


World of OC x Canoncraft

by Awryen



Category: World of Warcraft
Genre: Angst, Bisexuality, Blood, Bolvar Foredragon (mentioned), Draenei, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Smut, OTP: Indigo Wolf, One-Sided Attraction, Oral sex (female recieving), Orcs, Shaw/Varian/Female OC (if you squint), Suggestive Themes, Unprotected Sex, Vaginal Sex, Valeera (mentioned), Voyeurism
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:20:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 29
Words: 38,871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27344950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Awryen/pseuds/Awryen
Summary: Ficlets that follow various moments in the lives of Varian Wrynn and Awryen, the Draenei Ranger who steals his heart.
Relationships: Anduin Wrynn & Original Female Character(s), Anduin Wrynn & Varian Wrynn, Varian Wrynn & Original Female Character(s), Varian Wrynn/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 14





	1. Day 1 - Meeting (pre Legion)

**Author's Note:**

> Well! This is the first time I'm posting anything that deals with a canon character like Varian Wrynn. So I'm a little nervous.
> 
> This is the first of the prompts from World of OC x Canoncraft that Pebster over on Tumblr put together last year. I'm still working through prompts, but I have the first 9 finished and I'm just polishing them a bit before I post them.
> 
> So, without further ado, here's day 1!

**Precursor to Battle for Undercity**

* * *

When Awryen met the King of Stormwind for the first time, it was due to bringing him something of grave importance. She had been in Northrend, working with the Argent Crusade in their bid to prepare for the assault on Ice Crown. However, word had been given out that the king had plans on attacking Undercity.

She had been lucky. In her journey across Dragonblight, Awryen had every intention of making it to the Wrathgate, but she was waylaid when Wrynn, her dire wolf, had been injured. The two of them had been fighting, and fleeing from, a small group of Malygos's blue dragons when he was hit by a blast of arcane magic.

As she took care of him at Wintergarde, news of the death and destruction at the Wrathgate had reached them, bringing sorrow to the Alliance.

For the Alliance had lost one of its most important heroes, Highlord Bolvar Foredragon.

On a more personal note, King Varian Wrynn had lost his closest friend and ally to the vile beasts of the Forsaken.

Once her companion was back on his feet, the young draenei made her way to the Wrathgate, to see for herself just what exactly had happened…

\----

A few days later, exhausted and carrying a charred and broken Alliance shield, the symbol of the former highlord engraved upon it, Awryen made her way back into Wintergarde.

Asking a friend of hers to open a portal to Stormwind, she teleported to the front of the Keep. Though only a few minutes’ walk, it felt like hours before she gifted the shield to the king.

It was her first time truly seeing the human male. Sure, she had seen him at a distance many times before, but this was new for her. His blue eyes were hard; sorrow, regret, and so much anger swimming within them as he gingerly took the shield from her hands. And though it was brief, his fingers skimmed her own, sending a small thrill of electricity throughout her body.

Awryen had to shake away the strange feeling as she focused on the king, his heartfelt gratitude pouring over her before he asked her to join his army in a bid to rid the Undercity of its foul taint.

She readily agreed, surprising herself at how quickly she agreed. Sapphire pools stared them down, one brow rising slightly at the scars upon the animal’s face, before his gaze settled upon her in assessment.

She refused to squirm under his scrutiny, and held her head up proudly. After a moment, Varian nodded, apparently satisfied with what he saw, a smirk forming on his ~~_(handsome)_~~ rugged face.

“Meet us in the portal room in a few days time. We will leave for Undercity as soon as Jaina returns from _Orgrimmar_ ,” he commanded quietly, a growl in his voice at the mention of the Horde city.

“Yes, your Majesty,” Awryen said, bowing deeply before she made eye contact with him once more. With that, she turned on her hoof and left the throne room.

Wrynn, her companion, stayed for a moment staring the elder human down before he snorted softly and followed his mistress. The two of them missed the glint of curiosity and intrigue in those sapphire depths.

* * *

**Ice Crown Citadel, Weeks Later**

* * *

Awryen was sitting to the side, away from a rather rowdy group of human males. Though she had made comrades throughout her journey in Northrend, it did not always mean others held respect for her. Human males made no sense to her with how they treated so many of their female counterparts.

She scoffed as one of the men sent a look her way, both a sneer _(she was draenei)_ and a leer _(she was female)_ before she pulled her crossbow into her lap and began to clean it, setting her bolts to the side in plain sight. Wrynn was at her side, his keen eyes on the men and the low hum of a growl reverberated through the air, which made the man turn back to the hushed conversation around him, fear sparking in the other's eyes as they looked away.

A hush settled over the corridor as King Wrynn made his way through the men and women situated around the room. For the moment, they had a reprieve from the Scourge and took advantage of it.

“You have _all_ done well. We have only a few more floors to ascend before we can finally make our push into stopping the Lich King _once and for all._ ”

There was a very slight hitch in his voice at the mention of Arthas. Awryen was not sure if anyone else heard it, but it brought her eyes up to the king.

Though it was hard to see in the cold, dimly lit corridor, she could see a shine in his eyes as he continued to talk to them, bolstering their morale.

A few weeks back, Awryen had met with a very unlikely duo, a night elf and blood elf, who told her a little bit of what exactly this campaign meant to the man. He had lost so much in this fight. Bolvar had been his closest friend and confidant, and secondary father to his son. Arthas had once been a close friend as well, when he had been in exile as a child. The female of the duo, however, implied the relations to have been more.

As she gazed up at the King, she felt an answering sorrow for the man. She was no stranger to that kind of loss and betrayal. Having grown up on Draenor, she had seen close friends, family, and lover fall to an all encompassing evil, both through death and temptation.

Her attention was brought back to the King suddenly as she realized he had stopped next to her. She snapped up eyes up to his scarred face, wide as she realized she had zoned out. A flush that she could not control bled across her pace, turning her skin a darker purple than it was normally.

He watched her, a stare that seemed to penetrate her very being before he motioned for her to follow him.

Confused and little bit cautious, Awryen quickly put away her oil cloths and bolts, then slung her crossbow across her back, and bade Wrynn to follow after her. She ignored the curious and baleful stares of the men behind her.

\----

The corridor was quiet as she followed the king further along before he turned into a small, cleared out room that had a window which over looked the desolate plains outside of the citadel.

Standing a good bit behind him, Awryen watched the king uncertainly for a few moments before she made her way hesitantly to stand next to him.

She gazed out the window. Argent Crusade soldiers were busy keeping the weaker Scourge at bay as she waited for the king to find his voice. She did not wait for very long.

“…you _know_.”

It was a quiet, simple question, but she knew of its meaning.

“…yes.”

“ _Who_ told you?” he growled, his keen blue eyes turning to her, a hard glint within them.

Awryen felt a small stab of fear trickle though her, but she quickly pushed it aside as she faced him square on.

“…I _believe_ you may know a Valeera and a Broll, am I assuming _correctly?_ ”

His eyes widened slightly before he snapped his gaze away from her and snorted.

“I’m _surprised_ they told you. I keep that association rather _close_ and have never let my people know the extent of my relationship with... _Arthas_ ,” he said, a slight flush to his cheeks. Then he turned to her again, a challenge deep in his eyes. “Does it _bother_ you?”

Awryen cocked her head as she studied the man. She was no stranger to witnessing a myriad of relationships in her two centuries of living, but as she found during her travels here, not all humans were so accepting. Her people were different, mainly in that they had to be. Being so long lived, proclivities, tastes, and feelings were ever changing, and thus, Awryen had no issues with them.

“ _No_ ,” she said simply.

The king raised a brow in surprise as the young draenei met his gaze head on, her eyes soft as she sympathized with him.

Awryen was no stranger herself. She had had a close friend back on Draenor that she had grown exceptionally close to…but lost to the raids by the fel orcs. Though she had since moved on, it still hurt.

Varian sighed, his eyes still clouded in regret.

“It _hurts,_ even now. I may have moved on in the years since I came back to Stormwind…but he’ll _always_ hold a special place within me, next to my wife…which is why we need to _finish this_ ,” he said, raising his eyes to hers again with a new found resolve and respect swimming within those sapphire depths.

“ _Thank you_ , champion.”

“…it’s Awryen.”

The king cocked his head at her as she smiled at him gently and reiterated, “My name is _Awryen_.”

“Awryen…”

She felt a shiver go down her spine as her name rolled off his tongue. He said it once more before he smiled to himself, holding out a hand to her.

Smile slowly sliding into a smirk, Varian said, full of cheek, “Pleased to _meet you_ , Awryen.”

Her own eyes wide, the draenei spluttered slightly before she took his hand, his fingers closing over her smaller one, enveloping it in soft warmth before they both shook them in a firm grip.

“The pleasure is all _mine_ , your Majesty.”


	2. Day 2 - Touch (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Touch can be so intimate, even when innocent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is set during WoD though there isn't any real mention of the timeline. *shrug*

Varian was just coming out of his private washroom when he heard the telltale sound of teleportation magic. He quickly wrapped his towel about his hips before two figures finally materialized in his rooms and he just shook his head, grinning.

Awryen sighed, her form slumping slightly as she began to loosen and drop her armor pieces. The hearthstone was the only thing placed with care upon the small table next to the door. Though he knew she took care of her gear, he could see on her face that she was exhausted and decided not to chide her for the obvious maltreatment of her gear.

Once her pauldrons were off, she unclipped her armguards and shin guards before scooting everything into a pile across the floor near the door.

Wrynn had shook his fur out before he turned, nosing the door to the front room open and loping over to the rug in front of the hearth, and plopping down in a huff of tired contentment.

All the while Varian was amused that she had not even seen him yet, much less in the state of undress he was in.

“Rough day?”

Softly glowing blue eyes shot up to his face in surprise before she realized what exactly she was seeing. Her face flushed.

“ _Varian!!_ I’m _so_ sorry!! I didn’t _mean—I just—!!_ ”

Varian chuckled before he made his way to the flustered woman standing by his dresser. His hands were propped against his hips as his smile began to morph into a smirk.

“This is _nothing_ you haven’t already seen, Rye.”

“I— _I know_ , but I… _well_ — I wasn’t exactly _ready_ to see you mostly _naked_ as I came in from a rather crappy day out in the field,” Awryen stammered, her embarrassment turning into disgruntlement as he quietly laughed at her. She did the mature thing and stuck her tongue out him, fangs glinting in the lamplight.

“Hand me a set of pants and I’ll make this less _awkward_ ,” he said, amusement still lacing his voice as he watched her turn to his dresser and pull open a drawer, finding out a pair of soft breeches. She tossed them to him as she began to remove her own clothing, yawn stretching across her face.

“The bath is still warm if you want to use it. It may not be the _freshest_ of water, but it should be fine for now.”

Awryen smiled at him greatfully, her eyes droopy with sleepiness.

“That’s fine, Vare. I just want to relax, get clean, and then get some _sleep…Light_ , I am _exhausted_ …”

As she turned to continue stripping out of the rest of her clothing, Varian let his towel drop and quickly slipped into the soft breeches she had tossed to him. Once semi clothed, he gathered up his as followed after her, picking up her discarded clothing with a slight tsk.

“So _messy_ …” he muttered softly before he stopped in the doorway to his washroom, clothing budled neatly and set on the table next to him. His towel was hug by the door.

Awryen swayed slightly, clad only in her underthings as she slowly brushed her hair, ridding it of tangles as she fought off another yawn. She had slight bruising along her back and thighs, no doubt from landing roughly or narrowly avoiding much more damaging assaults.

Varian frowned. This was the one thing he had struggled with ever since they started seeing each other romantically. His first and foremost instinct was to shutter her away, like he had done to Anduin for a few years…but they had already had one major argument regarding his over protectiveness and he was not about to bring it up again.

Besides, he knew she could protect herself just fine. She trusted him to keep his word and that mattered more to him than anything.

Sighing, he softly took her brush from her and slowly ran the bristles through her hair, the gentle touch causing her to sigh and sag slightly back against him. He continued to brush her hair before he finally put the tool down on the wash basin and leaned against her to speak to her softly.

“I’ll wash your hair, love.”

Awryen nodded, her face flushed slightly as she finally shed the last of her clothing. She slipped into the bath, her king keeping a hold of her hand to ensure she did not lose her footing. Both of them knew hooves could be a tad treacherous on slick stone.

After she settled into the bath, a sigh of contentment left her lips as the still slightly steaming water washed over her aching body. Varian only smiled before he reached for a pitcher to dip into the water and pour along her scalp.

Pulling her hair free of the tub water, Varian let it rest along the side of the tub as he reached for the light soap he used for his own hair. Lathering up his hands into a sudsy foam, he began to massage the soap into her hair.

He felt her sag more into the water as his fingers moved along her scalp before he ran his fingers through her hair. Occasionally he would hit a snag and softly pick it apart before he continued washing the thick black strands. Minutes passed as he continued before he heard the softest of snores from his lover, which prompted a soft chuckle.

Finished washing her hair, he dipped his hands into the water to free them of soap before he woke her.

Her sleepy gaze focused up at him as he asked her to sit up so he could rinse her hair.

The warm water slid through the thick mane, splashing along the floor, but he paid it no mind. He had engineers years ago build the room to accommodate a drain to allow for things such as this.

Hair clean, he handed Awryen a wash cloth and bade her to clean before he left her for the bedroom.

\----

Varian was already propped up in his massive bed with a book when Awryen made her way into his chamber ten minutes later. She had her towel wrapped about her and before she could wander to his dresser, he looked up at her and cleared his throat.

“ _Here._ ”

Instead of tossing the shirt her way, he held it out to her, bidding her to come to him. She smiled at him in sleepy gratitude as she took the shirt from him, leaning down to kiss him softly, her lips grazing along his in a light touch.

“Thank you, Vare.”

Giving him a sleepy smirk, she dropped her towel, gracing him with her toned, naked form before she pulled the large shirt over her head, hiding her still flushed skin away from his suddenly hungry gaze.

Squashing the desire the move had ignited within him, Varian pulled the furs and sheets back to allow the draenei to crawl into his bed after she hung the towel next to his. Once she hit the mattress and settled in next to him, he knew there would be nothing more than the sweet feel of her curled up against him for the next few hours, at the least. Her eyes began to droop, ever more heavy as she turned to him and buried her face into his side.

Closing the book, setting it down on the side table next to him, and turning the lamp down, Varian shifted to get settled more comfortably.

Awryen made a sleepy sound of annoyance at being jostled from her comfortable position, but she soon settled back down when he pulled her up against him, letting her bury her face into his chest as he laid upon his side, his arm wrapping around her waist while the other was tucked under his pillow.

“… _love_ you, Vare…”

The sleepy declaration made him still. Varian’s eyes were wide in the dim lamplight. Neither one of them had said a word outside of their more physical relationship, but he himself had known for a while now that the draenei had stolen his heart.

Apparently, he had stolen hers as well.

He let go of the breath he had been holding, feeling her going more and more still as she fell into sleep and buried his face into her hair.

“…And I love _you_ …”


	3. Day 3 - Date (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian isn't the most creative when he's tired.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Straight silliness with some suggestive hints. Pure indulgence!

“This is your idea of a _date_?”

Awryen slid her gaze to the man next to her, a cheeky grin showcasing her teeth, stretched across her face.

“No _romantic_ picnic in the park? No _night out_ at the theater?”

Varian just rolled his eyes as he pushed the door to their favored _~~secret~~_ pub open. _Bizmo’s Brawlpub_.

“We _both_ know we prefer this kind of atmosphere, but if you _want_ to see a play _sometime_ …” he said, a highly put upon look on his face that she knew was only an act. The man did enjoy a good play.

“Varian, I’m _picking_. This is fine!! I love it here and I _love_ being here with _you_ ,” she assured, her grin softening into a smile as she stepped ahead of him, ghosting her hand up along the bottom of his jaw.

“But…if you’re _offering…?_ ”

He huffed out an exasperated chuckle before he pushed her lightly forward, his hand at the small of her back.

“I hear _Wikket_ is coming to town soon?”

Awryen grimaced as she heard the king chuckle behind her.

“ _Um_ … _unless_ you can find a troupe that _isn’t_ made up of Hozen, then sure…no offense to them, but they kind of _butchered that story…_ ”

Her answer was a deep laugh as she scowled at the man following beside her, nodding to the bouncers as they passed further into the pub. Bizmo himself had just landed his small chopper, saw the two of them, and bounded his way over to them.

“ _Evening_ , my friends!! Are you two here to participate in the challenges tonight? Or are we here to enjoy the music acts _upstairs_?” he asked jovially, a knowing glint in his green eyes.

“Upstairs. We’re both a little too worn out to take part in the fights tonight,” Varian said, an apology in his eyes. He had his bandana in place, keeping his identity secret. Awryen nodded to the gnome.

“Who do you have playing tonight?”

“ _Oooh_ , you two are in for a treat!! The dwarven singer, Eilidh King is in, followed by the quel'dorei entertainer, Kaesha! They’ve planned for a slower evening, performing their more subdued numbers. A rather, uh, _romantic evening_ , wouldn’t you say?”

Awryen felt her face flush as she covered her mouth, suppressing a laugh as Varian rolled his eyes at the cheeky, obvious gnome.

“Just make sure we have a flagon of mead heading our way, _alright?_ ” he asked before turning the draenei around and wrapping his arm around her waist before they both headed for the stairs.

“Will _do_ , old friend!!”

* * *

**Upstairs**

* * *

They were a few good tankards into their mead and feeling good when Awryen perked up slightly. Eilidh had already done a few numbers and Kaesha was on her third.

Her head started to bob as she began to hum along to the song. Varian watched her in interest as she began to sing along, sliding a look his way that sent a thrill throughout his body.

_“Then I met you Saturday night, I tried to run away  
Sunday morning, I woke up fucked up, with you right next to me  
Had a port booked to Northrend, but you took me by the hand  
Now every morning I wake up with you right next to me”_

Varian sat forward when the cheeky woman before him stood up and began to dance for him, her hips swaying enticingly as she got into the chorus of the song.

 _“I’m walking on air, kickin’ my blues  
everything stops when I’m with you  
so slide over here, tell me the truth  
I know you love me wearing _NOTHING _but your…_ boots _”_

She made a motion for him to slide towards her and he did, coming up from the table and taking her hand, pulling her to him as she continued her dance, encouraging him to move as she was. There was soft gridning, legs occasionally brushing up each others calves, hands wandering...it was intoxicating...

_“Baby pick me up, spin me ‘round, take me on a ride  
Pull you by the belt, recognize that you’re mine tonight...”_

Varain leaned his head down, burying his face against her neck, just at the bottom of her ear.

“Your message is loud and _clear_ , love…” he growled, nipping at her skin as his incisors sharpened slightly. Awryen only smirked at him in response before she turned to him and pulled him into a teasing kiss. He groaned.

“Do you want to find an empty room _here_ or leave for the keep?”

She growled at him this time.

“If you don’t _fuck_ me soon, I’ll _personally_ sign you up for the _Stranglethorn Streak_ ,” she breathed against his lips before he slanted his own against hers, his tongue finding no resistance as it breached her lips.

As they continued to kiss hungrily, Varian slipped his hearthstone free and activated it, holding onto her tightly as the magic engulfed them and they teleported back to his chambers.

He vaguely thought to himself he needed to plan underwhelming dates a little more often before smaller hands began tugging his clothing free...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the Stranglethorn Streak is a relatively new additon to the Brawlpub challenges, but I thought the idea of it was interesting enough to be a rather credible threat here, hehehe.
> 
> Also, there will be liberal use of hearthstones in these stories. I know, originally, they were supposed to be rare, but with the way our characters have just collected them over these last few years, I'm nixing the whole rare thing.


	4. Day 4 - Embrace (Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All we need is a bit of hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first of my Resurrection!AU stuff. I'll be posting a bit of that as we continue with these.

The room was silent and dim after the blinding flash of light that flooded everyone’s senses. Khadgar, Jus’ma, Nakara, and Eeryn stood away from the circle on the floor and the two figures with in it. Their various weapons were on hand in case the ritual they had spent weeks preparing for had failed.

Faint curls of purple and white smoke wafted through the air, evidence that candles had once been lit around the room. Now, the only bits of light illuminating them were from the objects that radiated arcane magic or the power of the Light.

One figure in the circle added to that illumination; scars that looked like cracks in ceramic, glowed with that faint mix of magic.

At the top of the circle, Awryen bowed low over the figure’s head, her hands pressed firmly against his temples. With one last pulse of bright green light, she whispered a healing incantation.

Minutes passed and nothing happened.

Blue eyes were squeezed shut, finger tips dug slightly into the cool skin underneath them, trembling.

“ _Please…_ ”

That faint whisper sounded loud to her ears, but the draenei ignored it. She willed the person underneath her to _mov_ e, dammit!!

_...twitch..._

Awryen’s eyes popped open at that minute movement. Her eyes fixed upon his as they fluttered open, glowing faintly, the sapphire not as deep as it had once been. They blinked once, twice.

“ _…Rye…?_ ”

She sobbed, a blinding smile lighting up her face as she moved to his side, allowing him to sit up with a groan.

_“Varian!!”_

Before he could focus on anything else in the room, Awryen threw her arms around him, half in his lap as she sobbed into his shoulder, completely overwhelmed with relief. Eyes wide before they slid closed, Varian wrapped an arm tightly around her back. Sitting up slightly, propped on the other arm as he embraced her, he buried his face into her shoulder.

A throat cleared, which grabbed his attention and Varian opened his eyes, turning his gaze to the four other people in the room.

“We’ll, uh, leave you to get _reacquainted_ , your Majesty,” Khadgar said, a rueful smile and flush upon his face as he ushered the others out of the room.

Varian nodded, not once letting go of the woman in his arms…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to change his scars here. 
> 
> >_<
> 
> I've since decided to make his scars look like that of the art of kintsugi.


	5. Day 5 - Kiss (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awryen and Varian finally have a talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I make mention of the Hallow's End here masquerade here. This is about events I have yet to write, but I have drawn a little of and posted on my tumblr, awryensketchbook. Check them out if you get the chance!! The tag is otp: indigo wolf for quicker access!

She was nervous. So nervous. She should not be, she knew that, but she _just_ could not help it!

Awryen paced around in the room she was using there at the garrison. Unlike the actual conscripts and other soldiers, she had not been given a room at the barracks. This was due in part to her tendency to travel around a lot more than they did, flitting about the continent helping the natives and spying on Garrosh.

The garrison itself had only a few high ranking officials housed within and the rest of the rooms upstairs were empty in the event of anyone else of import needing temporary lodging.

One of whom was the King himself. Anduin had had a room for months now, seeing as the stubborn young man refused to go home.

Clearing her thoughts of the spirited young prince and the trouble he kept getting himself _(and her)_ into, she continued her pacing.

Varian had asked for a meeting with her. She was not so stupid as to pretend to think it had anything to do with anything innocent. They were walking a thin line, Awryen knew. Had been for ages now. And she was _so_ nervous.

Awryen had been avoiding him and they both knew it. Ever since the Masquerade on Hallow’s End night, she had been avoiding him. Nakara had warned her of doing so, but she had not had the guts to face him again.

Closing her eyes, the draenei remembered that night. The gentle sway of their movements as they danced around the ballroom. Though they had both been wearing masks, they were not able hide the feelings that had been developing from within. Eyes were the windows to the soul, or so they say.

There was one moment, however, that she kept replaying every night as she went to sleep.

Varian, who at that point had kept his identity secret _(as was tradition of the Wrynn family on Hallow’s End)_ , had done something that she had fervently hoped he would do; he had nearly _kissed_ her.

Their lips had been a scants breath away from brushing when she had heard a rather loud noble woman make snide comments about her.

Usually, Awryen ignored those kinds of comments. They were not exactly unusual, but the people whose opinion she cared for the most would never say such things and she could ignore them with ease.

But this was different.

No matter how much of a warrior he was, how much he was able, to some extent, to understand the citizens of his kingdom that were not of noble blood, Varian was _still_ royalty. Being royalty meant that he had certain expectations placed upon him; even though he tended to ignore them. One of which was obvious, even to her.

Should the king begin to court someone, it was expected the person to be of noble blood. Not some foreign, no, _alien_ woman. Not someone who was so obviously _inhuman_. Everyone knew that and this noble woman was no different. Hell, an elf woman would have been more preferable than _her_.

So, Awryen did the only thing she could think of in that moment: she had run.

Nakara had found her soon after and told her how confused and hurt the king had looked when she had run from him and it made her feel like a terrible person, but she could not stay. Even though she hated to admit it, those words had hurt.

_"Cur."_

_"Blue blooded harlot."_

_"Is that the_ king? _How_ dare _she! As if he would_ ever _send a second look at that beast."_

Over the month since, Awryen had wrestled with her guilt, shame, and anger. She knew she was a much better person than that noble bitch and had even taken some amount of pleasure at the news that Varian had stripped the bitch of her title and sent her to the cathedral to train in healing; but the words still stuck.

It was not long before Varian would try to speak with her. Every time, however, she tended to make herself scarce. A raid on Garrosh’s base, the Shado-Pan needed help in Townlong Steppes, the Sha of Anger was spotted in Kun-Lai? She was there and he was getting increasingly more frustrated with her. At least according to Anduin.

The prince always told her of his father’s moods, as the king visited his still recovering son as often as he could afford. She always tried to ignore how much Varian had apparently been beside himself when she had been hovering near death’s door herself after saving Anduin. It made her cowardly actions nag her even more and it kept sending hope her way that she knew she could not fight.

But today? Awreyn had no excuses. No one needed her anywhere, not even Wrathion. Which meant she was free to speak to the king. No, she was free to _report_ to the king. He had made it an order this time.

Glancing at the clock on the mantle, Awryen cringed at the time. He had expected her fourty-five minutes ago and she had stalled. Feeling the guilt hit her hard, she finally gave in and left her room, making her way down the hall to a deserted room that he had indicated in the scroll he had sent her earlier that morning.

Breathing in deep, the draenei hovered at the door, steeling herself, and then grabbed the handle. Turning it and pushing the door open, her eyes looked to the front of the room. Standing there, not moving with his back to her, was Varian.

She was not surprised that he had waited, but she was surprised he was not spitting mad…though her instincts were telling her that he was and it was simmering below the surface.

Stepping further into the room, closing the door softly behind her and locking it, Awryen moved until she was but four feet away from him.

“…you wished to speak to me?”

The question hung in the air for a few moments before he shifted and turned his head to look at her. His eyes were hard and she could see the faintest traces of hurt within them, mixing with the anger.

“ _So._ You finally deign to come to me. I never _thought_ you'd be such a coward.”

The barb stung, but she could not refute it. He was right and they both knew it.

Standing tall, she looked him in the eye.

“Yes.”

Turning fully to her, Varian stalked forward, his presence bearing down on her, but she refused to cow to him. And she refused to cow to her own guilt or fears.

“You _know_ what this is about.”

“Yes.”

“So why did you _run?_ ” There was the faintest of pleas in his voice as his eyes searched hers.

Closing her eyes for a moment, Awryen forced her thoughts to clear so she could answer him truthfully.

“I was _scared_.”

“ _Why?_ ”

"I haven’t…I haven't _felt_ like this…in years now. But…I also know that the _nobility_ in your court wouldn’t _approve_.”

Varian snorted at that.

“In the time you have come to know me, have I _ever_ made it known that I give a good rat’s _ass_ about what they think of me and my own _personal_ affairs?”

“Well… _no_ , but—“

“Nothing _‘but’_ about it. I already have an heir, so there is no pressing need to produce another. And everyone knows how much I... _loved..._ Tiffin.”

He faltered slightly at the mention of his wife, but he soldiered on.

“I made it _clear_ years ago, that no one was ever going to make that decision for me, or my son. Not again. Yes, the noble houses are important. But my happiness, and the happiness of my son, _far_ outweighs the selfish machinations of the nobility.”

Awryen could not say anything to that. It was true. He had mentioned in passing before that he was never going to marry again for political reasons. It would be strictly because he wanted to. Because he had found someone who completed him. Tiffin had been a fluke. Their marriage had been arranged, and he had fallen for her hard. However, he knew of others who had not had similar experiences and he refused to put himself or his son through that possibility.

Why she had forgotten this, she was not sure.

_‘No,’_ a little voice spoke to her, _‘that isn’t true. You’re scared of getting attached again. And then losing him.’_

Her mind thought back to that first meeting between them. When he had confirmed his past relations with Arthas and her own inner admission to a similar relation when she had still been living on Draeneor. The woman she had been with, she had loved dearly. As strongly as Varian had loved his wife.

That kind of love brought with it a fear. Loss was a terrible thing to experience and when finding yourself feeling strongly for someone once again, that fear tended to double.

Awryen swallowed as his eyes softened a bit and he stepped forward, closing the distance between them.

“I _know_ that fear, Awryen,” he said softly, as he lifted a hand to softly run his fingers down her cheek. She vaguely wondered if she had spoken her thought aloud, as she was once again astounded by his perceptiveness. “But I’ve lived my life in _fear_ for too long, as evidenced with how I handled Anduin. I want to move _forward…_ with someone of _my_ choosing.”

She felt an answering yearning. Though she had not been in the same kind of circumstances, her life had not afforded her to be a coward. She either lived or did not. She either faced her fears, the dangers her people constantly faced, or she did not.

Her feelings for this remarkable man was just one more in a long line of things she needed to face.

“Varian…why _me?_ ”

“Because you didn’t let the mantle of _king_ get in the way of befriending me. Most _cannot_ get passed the title,” he said simply, as his hand moved to curl along the back of her neck.

“Save for this one little hiccup,” she answered back, sardonically.

“I can forgive that. One small lapse in judgment isn’t a deal breaker for me…especially when it’s couched in a fear we _both_ understand.”

In the span of their small conversation, they had moved ever closer, her hands coming up to rest against his chest, one hand fisting slightly against the fabric of his vest. She became acutely aware of how close their faces had gotten, noses just barely apart.

Awryen let her tongue dart out, wetting her bottom lip as her eyes glanced down to his lips before meeting his once again. They widened slightly when she saw the sapphire begin to bleed into a forest green. It always fascinated her how his eyes changed color when his emotions would start to get the better of him.

She breathed in deep and felt his lips meet hers, finally. It was a soft touch at first, like he was afraid she would push him back, but she did not. Instead, his other hand moved up and gripped her upper arm, pulling her closer as he deepened the kiss, his tongue tracing her bottom lip. Before she granted him entrance, Awryen captured the tip of his tongue, sucking it in causing him to groan softly into her mouth. When she let go, he swept it through, brushing against her teeth before softly meeting her own.

She pushed up on her hooves, eager to keep the kiss deep when there was a swift knock at the door.

“Your majesty? Are you in there? We have some _urgent_ news about the Horde!”

With a groan, Varian pulled away from her, a single muttered _‘fuck’_ leaving his kiss swollen lips, glistening pink in the light of the room.

Awryen herself was a bit dazed as she stepped back slightly, her hands fisted into his vest. She let the fabric let go to smooth it out as the soldier on the other side of the door knocked again, a little more urgently.

“Hmm, _duty_ calls. We’ll continue this _soon_ ,” he softly growled, the rumble sending a shiver down her spine.

“I’ll hold you to it,” she said, a smile curling her lips as she quickly stepped away from him, striding to the side of the door so that the he could leave without giving her away.

Before he opened the door, Varian slid his gaze her way; the heat within his eyes, now a lime green, had her floored and unable to look away, nor fight the flush crawling across her cheeks.

He smirked, then opened the door quickly. He closed it behind him as he called to the soldier, who had apparently decided that the king had not been in the room after all and was checking the other rooms along the way.

Awryen had to fight her beating heart into submission, all the while a smile was spread across her face, happy tears pooling in her eyes.

Why she ever let fears regarding this man and her feelings for him to rule her, she would never fully know, but the draenei was excited to see where this would go.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh, my grammar isn't the best here. But I couldn't figure out to word some things well, so hopefully it doesn't bother anyone too much. 
> 
> :S


	6. Day 6 - Quarrel (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian falls back on something he never thought he would do again. Luckily, he has people who set him straight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a slight shift in this compared to everything I've posted so far, especially after yesterday's post. This gets a tiny bit dark and there's some light abuse here, so you've been warned.

Varian was furious and _scared_. The reports that had landed upon his desk painted a dangerous picture, one that was already filled with loss.

Maraad was dead, sacrificing himself to save the band of champions that followed his commander in the fight at the Iron Docks. That commander being Awryen _herself_.

He was wrestling hard with himself. Every instinct was yelling at him to keep her safe. He had already lost one person in his life to circumstances he could not control. Anduin and Awryen both had nearly died in their confrontation with Garrosh in Pandaria. And now, after having been locked away on Draenor fighting the old Horde, his lover was nearly killed in a desperate attempt to stifle resistance.

He could not stand it.

Standing abruptly from behind his desk, he stalked over to the woman before him.

“You’re _not_ going back.”

He chose to ignore the little voice within that told him this was wrong. His fear was too strong.

A look of confusion spread upon her face before anger sparked in her eyes.

“Like _hell_ I’m not.”

“I _mean_ it, Rye. This Horde, it’s different from ours. Hell, it’s different even from what it was _before_. I _will not_ lose you to this. The Dark Portal is closed and we have other agents on Draenor.”

His words held a finality to them that pissed the draenei off and she snarled.

“You _cannot_ keep me from my garrison! They need me there!! _I_ _will not allow_ my people to go through another attempted _genocide!!_ ”

“No.”

“You _can’t_ — You _WON’T_ lock me away here!!”

“I _can_ and I _WILL!!_ ” he snarled back, breath seething through his bared teeth.

Awryen snapped back as though she had been slapped, her eyes wide at the fury in his eyes, the blue bleeding to a bright green. Then she reacted.

With a strangled cry of rage, she flew at him, her fist catching him in a hard upward cut into his chin. His teeth clicked together before he brought his arms up in defense. She continued to throw punches, a hoof flying at him from time to time that he had to block. He knew he would be sporting cuts and bruises from this later. His lover was no pushover, after all. But enough was enough.

In her fury, her attacks were wild and he quickly subdued her just as the door opened and his son entered the room.

“What the— ! _What_ is going _on_ in here?!”

Varian had Awryen pressed against the wall, her hands trapped behind her as she tried to wriggle free, sobs full of anger tearing from her throat. From her left pouch, he fished out the hearthstones she kept and tucked them away in his tunic before he finally let her go.

Ignoring Anduin, who had quickly gone to her side, trying to calm her down and ascertain just what had happened, the king went to the door.

“Make _sure_ a guard detail is set up for her. She is not to leave the city under _any_ circumstances.”

Taken aback by the order, the guard, a human woman, glanced into the war room in concern at the downtrodden draenei. Completely confused, she nodded and left to carry out his orders.

“ _Father!_ ”

Varian glanced over his shoulder at his son, noting the rising anger in his gentle eyes.

“I’m only doing what I can to _protect_ her,” he said, a small wave of exhaustion hitting him as he flicked his bangs from his face.

“By _trapping_ her here? Have you learned _nothing?_ ”

What Anduin said stung, for there was truth to it. But he shook his head and ignored the barb and told his son the same thing he had told the guard.

“She is _not_ to leave the city under _any_ circumstances. I expect to be _obeyed_ , Anduin.”

With that last growl, he left the war room, the door slamming behind him.

* * *

**A week later**

* * *

Varian felt awful. He had gotten reports of attacks on the Garrison at Lunarfall. The Iron Horde was getting bolder. Luckily, the various recruits and soldiers posted there, both the Alliance’s and Draenor’s own, had fought the attack off, led by Lieutenant Thorn in Awryen’s stead. Two buildings had been lost, however. This was something he knew, had Awryen been there, would never have happened...

_‘Awryen...’_

She had yet to seek him out. From what his son had told him, his answers clipped and short, the draenei was spending her time at the stables. Her gryphon, Featherheart, was staged there and she took the beast out to fly around the open fields and hills behind the keep. Wrynn joined her often, chasing animals that dared to leave their burrows on their runs.

Anduin also spent his time with her, asking about her adventures on Draenor, asking about her people and their customs, if she had met anyone she once knew. She readily told him, but neglected to say anything to him.

That night, as he made his way to his chambers, he heard the soft footfalls of his son behind him. Turning, his brow creased into a frown at the sad, pained look upon his face.

“I _need_ to speak with you, father.”

Varian gave a slow nod and opened the door to his sitting room, allowing Anduin to enter before him, and then shut the door. He waved his son into a seat before he headed for the cabinet off to the side of the room, where he kept his personal stash of various liquors.

“...Son, do you want anything?”

Pulling a bottle from the top shelf, he pulled out two tumblers, and quickly filled one of them half way, waiting for his son to reply.

“...you know, why the hell not. Sure.”

Ignoring his son's small curse, he filled the other tumbler with the amber liquid. Finished, Varian put the bottle away and brought the glasses with him, handing one to Anduin.

They both sat in silence for a few moments, each savoring a sip or two of the liquid, the burn making their bodies settle into a less stiff state before the prince spoke.

“Did it work on _me_ , father?”

Brow creasing slightly, the king looked to his son and waited for more clarification.

“You _onc_ e tried to lock me away when I wanted to train with Vellen. In fact, _most_ of my years were sheltered before then. I understood _why_ you did it, father, but you knew it would _never_ last.”

Setting his glass on the low table before them, Anduin turned to his father.

“In your fear of losing me, you nearly _lost me_ in the worst way possible. For a while there, father…I _resented_ you. I even _hated_ you, just a little.”

Varian looked up at his son, his eyes shining with worry and a resignation borne of understanding as his son continued to speak. It was something he had always known, but refused to look into, for it hurt. And the shame...

“Do you want that for _her?_ We both know she is a capable woman. _Light_ , she has a century and half on us in age and experience. Things _happen_ , father. You know that better than anyone and you can’t always be prepared for that. Stifling anyone in order to protect them will just make them more _reckless,_ more resentful… _hateful_ even.”

Settling a hand on his arm, his son urged him.

“ _Let her go._ She’ll be fine.”

With a sigh of defeat, and that little voice telling him _‘I told you, so’_ , Varian threw back his drink and set the glass on the table. Running his tongue over his teeth, he said quietly, “You’re right. _Fuck_ , I...I thought I was _past_ this.”

With a quick turn, he pulled his son into a tight hug.

“I am _so sorry_ , Anduin. I know I've apologized before, but I am still _sorry_ , my son.”

Chuckling slightly, the young prince hugged him before pulling back. Looking remarkably older in that moment, Anduin looked his father in the eye.

“ _Now._ Go tell _her_ that.”

Varian did not need to be told twice.

* * *

**Later in the Trade District**

* * *

Awryen was getting dressed for bed, a light shirt pulled over her body; this and her undergarments the only clothing she allowed for sleep, when she heard a soft knock at her door. Wrynn’s head perked up, a soft _‘wuff’_ in question as she stepped to the door, pulling a robe around her as she went.

Looking out the peep hole, she could not make out the outline of the person standing there and cautiously opened the door, her hand wrapped around a dagger she kept nearby.

Once the door swung open, the dagger clutched hard in her grip, she nearly dropped it when the person standing before her pushed the hood of his cloak back slightly.

“…Varian?”

Giving her a strained smile, he cleared his throat and asked quietly, “May I come in?”

Contemplating just slamming the door in his face, Awryen studied him. He looked a little worse for wear. There was a slight slump to his shoulders and he had the beginning of black rings under his eyes. She felt her heart reach out to him. But she did nothing save for bidding him entrance, replacing her dagger, and walk back into the small living room of her apartment.

Shutting the door behind him, Varian shook the cloak off and hung it by the door before he turned to her. He beat her to the punch on speaking.

“ _I am sorry._ ”

Blinking at him, Awryen turned to him, her arms folded across her front.

“I was _wrong_.” With a shake of his head, he continued, ”No, I _am_ wrong. I had no _right_ to trap you here and no _excuse_ I have makes it right.”

Surprising her, he bowed deeply at the waist, his braided hair spilling over his shoulder to brush the floor.

“If I can _trust_ you with my _very life_ on the battle field, I can _trust_ that you know how to stay alive when I’m not there.”

Rising once again to his full height, his sapphire depths sought hers, the sorrow and remorse genuine within them.

“Can you _ever_ forgive me?”

Feeling a great weight being lifted from her chest, Awryen kept her face neutral as she left him to squirm. The truth was, as soon as his hood slipped away from his face, she had forgiven him. Varian was a man of action. He was also impulsive, a bit rash with things that mattered to him personally, and after talking to Anduin over this last week, knew the king had a hard time accepting that not everyone needed his direct protection. Especially for those whom he cared for very much.

Seeing him begin to shift on his feet in discomfort, a smile rose on her face as she unfolded her arms.

“I already _have_ , Vare.”

A relieved smile broke upon his face as he took a tentative step forward before she opened her arms in invitation. Striding over to her, he scooped her up in a tight embrace, burying his face in her neck as she clung to him.

“ _I am so sorry…_ ”

“I _know._ ”

He set her back down and she reached up to cup his jaw, the pads of her thumbs running over the stubble that had grown a little longer than he usually allowed. The sight of his obvious distress both saddened and delighted her, letting her know she had not been the only one to suffer that week.

Gripping his face, she held him fast as she commanded, “Do _NOT_ do that again.”

Expression serious, Varian gave a sharp nod, jostling her hands slightly as he answered back. “ _Yes ma’am._ ” He meant it.

Pleased, Awreyn smiled, cupped his face again and pulled him into a kiss, his hands sliding from her back to rest at her hips as he kissed her back, desperate for her touch.

* * *

Bonus art!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know Wolfheart is a very controversial book regarding Varian, but it IS canon. I know I know, we make of canon what we will, but I have to admit, this just adds to his complexity for me. Especially when it comes to his owning up and realizing mistakes. And lets face it. He's human and even the best of humans can backtrack when they're under some major stress. So long as they apologize and work to never do so again.
> 
> Varian, for me, is that person who does something, at the most, twice, before it sticks. So after this point, there will bo no other instance of this kind of abuse.


	7. Day 7 - Roses (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian learns to appreciate Love is in the Air a little...differently. *wink*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where my stuff starts to get a bit more racy. There's no smut (yet) but this is def a bit more saucy than even the date night prompt.
> 
> I am also updating the rating for this fic. Proceed with caution from here on out!!

He did not _hate_ the holiday. Light new the people of Stormwind; the people of the _Alliance_ needed the two week long holiday celebrations to spend time with their loved ones…but the _charms?_

Varian sighed.

Luckily, he had put a limit on how many his people could leave at the keep. He also made sure many of them could be repurposed into gifts for those less fortunate. Children loved them and they did have a value to them, so those who wished to sell them, could. The king made sure those things were taken care of, as he refused to leave his people hanging…not like before.

Turning his thoughts away from a much more depressive time, Varian concentrated on getting into his chambers.

Opening the door, his senses told him something was…off. Eyes narrowing, he pushed the door open slowly, eyes scanning the room for any movement. His hand rested upon the pommel of Shalamayne, ready to defend himself if necessary. But there was nothing.

Still suspicious, he pushed into his sitting room and closed the door behind him when he saw it.

On the floor was a trail of rose petals.

One brow rising in curiosity, the king let his gaze travel across the floor to his bedroom door. It was cracked open just enough to show him that there was light within.

At the start of his day, he usually kept the sconces free of flame, but he could tell a few had been lit, leaving both rooms in a dim, soft light.

Already having an idea of who he would see in the nest room, Varian let a smirk spread across his face as he carefully followed the trail of petals. At the door to his bedroom, he paused. There was the slightest fragrance…subtle, but still enticing.

Lavender, if he was correct. The scent mixed with teh faint smell of the rose petals, leaving his head feeling slightly fuzzy.

Gripping the door handle, he pushed his way in, eyes still upon the trail of rose petals. He would play the game. For he knew now that was _exactly_ what this was. A game; one he knew he would enjoy just as much as the instigator.

Coming fully into the room, Varian reached up to his collar and began to unclip the hooks keeping his vest closed over his tucked in shirt. Sapphire eyes continued their slow trail across the floor where it stopped at a pair of hooves.

Climbing the hooves, up onto soft muscular _(bared)_ legs, Varian felt his mouth go dry.

Perched against the side table that was standing next his washroom door, was Awryen.

And what a vision she was.

Suddenly his clothing was too tight, hot and restricting. So much so he began to undo the hooks and buttons faster, his eyes still tracing over her form.

_“Rough day?”_

The question was coy and he was reminded of a similar question he had once asked her, but his brain was getting fuzzy.

The draenei before him was clad in nothing save for a harness that crisscrossed her skin, purple roses sewn upon the straps, draped across just so that it showed off her curves and soft musculature…breasts bare…and lower…

Plump was the word that made it through the haze.

His vest and shirt made it to the floor, pants already unclasped as he stalked across the stone floor of his room, sapphire eyes darkened to a forest green. Her eyes were caught in his gaze as she shifted, sliding a hand up her chest, brushing across a nipple that was already peaked.

A quiet thunk hit the floor as one of those Light's damned charm bracelets he dreaded fell from her tail.

_‘Charming indeed,’_ he thought.

His smile was positively wolfish when he saw the desire pool in her eyes.

“ _No_ …but it might be _soon..._ ” he answered, a growl lacing his tone as reached for her, his hands lighting upon her hips to pull her closer to him; to feel those curves against his skin before he pulled her into a searing kiss. He felt her fingers glide up to his hair before he felt the gentle tug of the cord holding his hair in place being pulled free. Then her fingers fisted in his now free hair as she slid her tongue into his mouth.

Head cloudy with desire, Varian had the fleeting thought that _Love is in the Air_ may not be such a droll holiday after all...

* * *

Bonus art!!

* * *


	8. Day 8 - Needy (Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awryen struggles with her own fears regarding Varian and his new life. Nakara is her voice of reason.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is short today. Short and sweet.

Awryen sat quietly on a stone bench. Below her in the massive auditorium, Varian was moving through various forms, his two handed swords flowing around him smoothly.

Everyone decided to stay at Karazhan for a few extra weeks, letting Varian get used to his new body. Even though he had been wandering the Broken Shore island for who knows how long, he had been fighting fel corruption the entire time. Now, his mind clear, he could properly get used to his body.

She could tell he was interested in the fact he was no longer winded, not that he had issues with that before. Goldrinn’s blessing ensured he had an abundance of stamina while he still lived. Now, he seemed to be stronger, faster, and no longer hampered by mortal limitations.

Worry still plagued her, however.

So far, the ritual that had brought him back and the ritual to cleanse him of the fel and shadow taint had proven to be sturdy. But her fears would not quiet.

Over these last few weeks, she had rarely left his side. The last time she did…she had _lost him_. And Awryen could not bear the thought of losing him again.

A presence made itself known beside her and she glanced to her right, her tired eyes lighting up at her friend.

Nakara, her orc mage friend, sat down quietly next to her, casting her gaze across the room, landing upon the former king as he continued his exercises.

Awryen had always thought her friend was rather pretty, she mused, turning her thoughts momentarily away from her love. Most orc women were muscular and toned, no less beautiful in their strength; trained to be warriors, hunters, and shaman. But Nakara was a little different. She was more slender, with less defined muscle due to her years of training as a mage and being raised by the sin’dorei.

 _‘If things had been different..’_ she thought, an amused smile upon her face. _‘Jus’ma is a lucky man.’_

She focused in on her again when she spoke.

“He won’t _break_ , my friend,” she said softly, keen teal gaze meeting her own. “His soul is _strong_. Goldrinn’s blessing seems to be intact, if Eeryn is correct. She may be a demon hunter, but she still has a few connections to her druidic roots.”

Awryen nodded, huffing out a sigh.

“I know, but…I’m _so afraid_ he’s just going to disappear again _,_ ” she sighed. Shifting slightly, she turned to her friend, sitting sideways upon the bench. “I _know_ he’s not, but he’s been through _so much_ this last year…I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.”

“But it _won’t._ _I promise._ Khadgar and I researched heavily to make sure his body stays strong. No one can undo those runes save for the archmage himself, me, and Jaina. Jus’ma may not be a priest, but his _faith_ and _strength_ in the Light made sure the magic he used for the soul bonding was strong. Goldrinn’s blessing was the anchor to an already strong soul.”

Nakara glanced at Varian once again, as he rushed a training dummy with a roar, slashing down its front, rending the poor thing in half, stuffing and wood exploding out around him.

“And he has _you,_ to _be_ at his side, to _soothe_ his heart. That’s all he _needs._ ”

The orc woman stood up, her soft, green skin almost shimmery in the magically induced light of the room.

“But give him _space_. He’ll tire of the hovering, _soon,_ I fear,” she said, giving her rueful smile before she headed up the steps next to the benches and left the auditorium.

Awryen knew she was right. Varian loved her and loved her being with him. But the man was fiercely independent. He had to be, over the hard years of his life. She knew she was being unreasonable in her worry, but he seemed to have, so far, not been bothered by it.

 _‘Though…he had been a little stand offish this morning,_ ’ now that she thought about it. An embarrassed flush spread across her cheeks. Nakara was right. He had to be getting tired of her, at least for this.

Taking a deep breath, she stood, and called down to the man below her.

“Vare?”

His gaze snapped up to hers, and even from a distance, she saw the hesitation in his gaze.

Her heart _clenched_.

“I’ll see you _later_. Okay?”

She would not elaborate with an excuse, like taking Wrynn out to hunt the animals around the tower or to go flying for a while _(though the idea was appealing)._ She just gave him a smile, full of happiness, love, and a little sorrow, before she turned on her hooves and made her way up the stairs. Before she could leave he called out to her.

“Rye?”

Awryen turned to him.

“I _love_ you.” A relieved smile lit upon his face, his eyes soft. “ _Thank you_.”

Feeling a weight lift from her chest, if only a bit, she nodded to him; then she left, closing the door behind her softly.

As she walked away from the auditorium, she found Wrynn wandering the halls, nosing out mice and rats. Shaking her head at his antics, Awryen decided to leave him be. Instead, she decided to take up her idea of flying around for a while. Her wolfhawk, Neasa, needed a break from being cooped up in the stables.

She would give her king, for he would _always_ be her _king_ , his much needed space. He was no porcelain doll and he had never been fragile. Not even when Gul’dan destroyed him. For what made him who he was, was strong and would always be so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't think it's been fully established in canon, but for me, Goldrinn's blessing isn't just on Varian's body, it's on his soul. Since his soul is still intact and wasn't in death long enough to fade away, it's still there, aiding him. Thing is, due to the rituals to bring him back, it's only a slight enhancement since he's no longer hampered by being mortal.


	9. Day 9 - The Past (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awryen and Varian have a talk about failure...and then they finally address that pesky tension.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This ficlet was inspired heavily by the song _Run to You_. I HIGHLY suggest listening to it to get the mood for the last half of their conversation.
> 
> This is smutty. It gets rather filthy, so you've been warned!!
> 
> One more thing!! Unlike these two _(cause, ya know, different species)_ , make sure to wrap it!!

Bizmo’s was quite that night. Only one or two bouts had been planned over the last few hours. The music acts had been slow, performed by those still getting their feet wet in the music world.

Awryen had paid no attention to any of it.

The music was mostly white noise that allowed her to stay inside her head. So did the whiskey.

She could not stop seeing him. The young prince, a bloody heap upon the ground. She had paid no mind whatsoever to her own serious wounds. Even gasping for breath due to a broken sternum, ribs, and hip, she had crawled to him, fearing she would be too late.

In her mind’s eye, she kept playing that scenario over…failing to save him, saving him. It did not matter. Each one played like a broken record.

 _‘If I’d only just_ stopped _him before he left the garrison…’_

Each and every time, she squeezed her eyes shut, berating herself for not standing up to him and forcing the issue. She knew deep down, however, Anduin would have left one way or the other. Memories of being mind controlled played hazily in her mind.

But that did not stop her from being _disgusted_ with herself.

Thanks to the whiskey, another memory kept playing out in her head, superimposing itself over Anduin. A memory she thought she had come to grips with years ago.

Pale lavender eyes, once vibrantly glowing, now dark. Unseeing. Blood pooled everywhere.

Awryen snatched up her tumbler and threw back what was left in the glass before placing it back on the table.

She whipped her head around at the sound of a voice clearing next to her.

Her slightly blurry gaze latched onto another set of blue eyes, the sapphire depths harder to see in the dim light of the pub.

“You want some company?”

Blinking at his appearance, Awryen took a moment before she nodded, waving Varian to sit down at the table. He cocked his head at her and she moved over, closer to the wall of the booth as he sat next to her. Without asking, he took the bottle of whiskey she had sitting at the table and poured more into her glass.

When he made to hand it to her, she just shook her head, setting her chin in her hand as she watched the next act make their way on stage.

The glass thunked softly on the table a few moments later. Apparently Varian decided to partake before he said his next piece.

“You wanna talk about it?”

Soft music was playing slightly as she mulled over his question. Did she? The memories were hounding her and they would _not_ stop. If she talked about them, then maybe…

“…do you _hate_ me?”

She could feel Varian’s confused stare before she turned to him and met it. His brows were pulled into a frown.

“ _Should_ I?”

“I failed to _protect your son._ Garrosh nearly killed him,” she whispered, turning her eyes away from his as a flush of shame lit up her cheeks. “Any other person would _hate_ me for it.”

A soft sigh floated between them before she felt the lightest touch of a gloved hand reach around to cup her cheek. She followed the gentle, yet insistent tug and turned back to him. His hand stayed where it was.

“Rye…I _am_ angry he was hurt. But not at you. Not at him; not really. Mostly I’m angry with _myself_ because I couldn’t _protect_ him, I’m angry he wouldn’t _listen to me_ and go back to Stormwind, but Anduin…is stubborn,” he said, a gentle chuckle leaving him. “He’s so much like me in that regard.”

“We both know he would do what he deemed important. And had you _not_ gone with him…”

The words hung in the air between them, heavy with the implication and she could see the pain in his eyes at the very thought.

“So, _stop_ thinking about what went wrong. Think about what went _right._ The bell is no longer a threat, and thanks to _you, he’s_ _alive._ ”

Awryen’s eyes had widened at the conviction in his voice. And it helped…a bit. Still, she could not shake the two memories from her mind’s eye. Unbidden, tears pooled at the edges.

Varian watched her and frowned slightly, a thumb coming up to wipe a stray tear from her cheek.

“What _is_ it, Rye? This isn’t entirely about _Anduin_ …is it?” he asked her quietly.

Bottom lip quivering, she shook her head before leaning into his touch more, his thumb moving absently, catching more tears as they began to fall.

“I keep seeing him. Broken. But it’s not just him. There’s someone else…someone else I failed to save…”

He waited, his other hand joining on her other cheek, cupping her face as she took a deep shuddering breath.

“In Shattrath…during those years the Fel Horde were attacking. My…my _brother_ had been studying the arcane arts. Our parents had been killed a few years previous in our home village. I _agonized_ over them, but I just hadn’t been nearby to go to the village and help protect it.

“But my brother…Vi’nu, I was stationed with a group of Rangari in Shattrath when the Horde attacked. We never thought they would have the _guts_ enough to do so, but they _did_. We were so under prepared for their numbers…”

Taking another deep breath to center herself, Awryen continued.

“His school was attacked. I made it there _too late_ , Varian!! A group of orcs were running from the building just as my group showed up…there was so much blood…broken stone work…bodies everywhere…”

A sob escaped her and she felt his hands grip her jaw a bit as she struggled to speak.

“I found him _too late_. No matter how many times I used the Gift or the paltry healing I’d learned as Rangari, I couldn’t bring him back. He was too _broken._ Too far _gone. I failed him!!”_

The dam broke and she lurched forward to bury her face into his chest. Her quiet cries echoed in the corner booth as he wrapped his arms about her, trying to soothe the hurt she was drowning in.

This was a pain he understood too well. A memory of his own floated to the forefront of his mind; the bloody blonde hair, a screaming baby, rubble everywhere…he shook his mind free of it. It was an old scar. It still hurt to think on it, but it was a very dull ache these days rather than the gaping wound it had been those first few years as he raised Anduin, his mother gone.

Pulling back slightly to place his hands on her shoulders, he pushed her back, bringing her to face him once again. The pads of his thumbs began wiping at the tears as he cupped her face again.

“I know you’re feeling that failure _deeply_ , Rye. And I am _so sorry_. _I understand, I truly do_.”

Varian leaned forward, his forehead brushing hers as she closed her eyes at the soft touch.

“But you didn’t fail _Anduin_. You _saved_ him. You were _there_ and _he’s here.”_

Brushing a stay strand of hair from her face, he slid his fingers down her cheek before his thumb trailed over her lips.

“Don’t dwell on it anymore. _Please?_ You did what you could, _each time._ It _hurts_ when we fail, but we always grow stronger from it _._ ”

Awryen’s tears had dried as he spoke, his words swirling in her head, taking the quiet strength in them and bolstering her own. He was right. Though she may have failed her brother, she had gone on to save countless civilians. She had saved another young sixteen year old from the jaws of death.

Breathing deep, her mind calmed. The memories of bloodied, broken bodies retreating as she was enveloped in his scent, his presence and warmth...

It was then that she realized how close they were. His hands had moved, one resting lightly upon her shoulder, curving slightly along her neck. The other was still at her face, thumb tracing her bottom lip.

As she focused back on him, her eyes meeting his, she noted a change in them.

The sapphire was different, more green than blue, his pupils wider than normal. Her breath caught at how charged the air between them had gotten so suddenly.

Reminded of another charged moment between them, she was acutely aware that there were no soldiers around to interrupt them this time.

“Varian…?”

The king blinked.

In the next moment, his mouth was on hers, hungry and desperate. His hands had moved to cup her jaw, bringing her forward before moving down to her waist. Her own arms had moved, wrapping about his shoulders, one had sliding into his hair.

A growl rumbled between them before he pulled back slightly to leave open mouthed kisses along her jaw, down her throat before he sucked at her pulse point. A coil of heat pooled in her belly, causing Awryen to keen softly.

Varian took one of his hands from her waist and slid it down to cup her thigh and brought her into his lap, sliding it up her ass to push her into him more. A groan followed as she ground down on him, already feeling the swelling in his breeches.

She had pulled him back into a searing kiss, her tongue asking for entrance, which he quickly granted. Her tongue swept through his mouth, brushing against his own before she felt the telltale sharpened canines.

Reluctantly, he pulled away from her, his eyes bleeding more green, turning a slight yellow in the process.

“ _Hearthstone._ Left pouch.”

Awryen fumbled her hand along his side, groping for the pouch before she found it. She slid her lips down his neck, nipping and sucking at the tender flesh, causing more of those delicious growls. Finding the stone, she pulled back as his fingers wrapped around it and her own before he said the incantation for teleport.

A few moments followed with heavy breathing before the light surrounded them and they left the pub.

* * *

**Keep, Varian’s Chambers**

* * *

The hearthstone had brought them to his sitting room, but they paid no mind to it. As soon as they had appeared in the room, Varian was already pulling at the buckles on her corset, guiding her backwards through the room until they hit the door to his bedroom. Pressing her into the wood, he hitched her up, and placed his right thigh beneath her as he continued to undo her top.

At the angle in which she was sitting, Awryen could easily grind against his thigh, sending more and more heat pooling in her belly, electricity thrumming through her nerves.

Her own hands had been undoing the claps on his vest and as soon as it was open, she pushed at the garment. Feeling her hands at his shoulders, the king let his arms fall back and the vest slipped free of him. She had already pulled his shirt free, untucking it and running her eager fingers over his abdomen, feeling the muscles twitch as her nails scraped across them.

The corset was finally undone and he growled, helping her to wiggle free of the offending piece of clothing before he untied the ties of her shirt, pulling it open and pulling it from her trousers.

Both shirts made it to the floor before he picked her up with one arm, opened his door, and pushed his way into the dimly lit room.

Her bra was barely a hindrance for him, her back arching as he closed his mouth over a cloth covered nipple, biting and sucking hard as he moved towards the bed.

He placed her down upon the mattress, kissing her long and hard as he slid his hands up her stomach to cup her breasts before finding the clasp in the front to undo her bra. It fell away, freeing her to his hungry, now golden eyes. She laid before him, half naked and a beautiful sight, hair already mussed and around her in a halo.

Awryen moaned softly as he leaned over her, one arm resting by her head as he took a nipple into his mouth, sucking before nipping it. His other hand was untying her trousers before dipping below the waist of her underwear, skimming at heat of her sex. She arched at the feel, her moan low in the room.

" _Mmmm..._ "

“ _Good_ , you’re almost ready,” he said, voice low with the rumble of need, causing her to twitch as his voice vibrated against the sensitive flesh of her nipple.

Moving his hands back over her chest, kneading and pinching at her breasts before sliding along her stomach, nails dragging against her flesh, Varian tucked his fingers into the band of her trousers and underwear. Raising his golden gaze to her, his smirk sinful, he pulled her clothing away. She raised her hips to help and soon, she was completely bare before his eyes.

He stood there, gazing upon her and she wondered what she looked like for him. For her, even half naked, he was a sight to behold. A light sheen of sweat dampened the skin of his torso. Her eyes followed the planes of his body, the hard muscle shifting in the light. Naturally, her gaze followed the line down his stomach and past the Adonis belt, before lighting upon the obvious bulge in his breeches.

“ _Like_ what you see, Rye?”

The growl in his voice sent a shiver down her spine, causing her to clench her thighs together. He tutted, reaching for her knees to spread her legs open wide before him.

“None of _that_ , love,” he murmured, before sinking to his knees.

Eyes still on her own, he leaned in and kissed along her inner thigh, occasionally biting and leaving a small bruise behind before laving his tongue over the injured flesh. Tucking his arms up under her thighs to curl around them and hold her open, he breathed along her flesh, the suddenly too warm air sending a shudder through her before she nearly arched off the bed, his tongue swiping deep up along her slit.

_“Ah!!”_

That was all it took. Varian’s tongue delved deep into her, licking and writhing. His nose brushed against her clit, sending electricity spiking through her body, causing her to move upon the mattress. Hands eager for some kind of purchase, Awryen buried them into his hair, causing strands to come free of its braid as she ground against his face.

His tongue left her and he flicked her clit before digging slightly at the bundle of nerves, sending her gasping loud. She could feel his eyes watching her; the muscles playing out along her abdomen, contracting as she felt herself moving closer to that edge. The pool of heat in her belly was growing hot, unbearably so.

She tumbled not long after she felt one of his hands leave her thigh and two fingers slid into her, curving slightly as they pumped within, nails dragging along the sensitive skin. Her vision went white, a high keen leaving her as she bucked under his ministrations, head thrown back in ecstasy.

He eventually pulled away from her, leaving her a quivery mess as he smirked, wiping the fluid from his face before sucking it into his mouth, a soft moan following the taste.

Standing, Awryen watched as Varian hooked his fingers into the waist of his breeches and pushed them down, taking along the underwear beneath them.

Her eyes widened slightly as his length sprang free. He was not huge, but he had been blessed enough. And he was beautiful.

“Do you need a _camera_ , love?” he teased before he stepped to the bed, urging her to move up slightly before he crawled over her, sinking down against her.

She said nothing as she reached for his face, pulling him into a hungry kiss, tasting and losing herself in the heady flavor. She felt him grind against her, his cock dragging along her clit, sending sparks through her once more.

Shifting, Varian rose slightly on one arm, gripping her thigh in the other. Fumbling slightly, he nudged the head of his cock at her entrance, watching her eyes. She gave the slightest nod before arching, her moan matching his as he sank into her, hitching her leg over his hip.

Moving his arm back to rest next her head, caging her in, he let her settle into his size before he moved. Those few shallow thrusts slowly turned deep.

He groaned, long slow thrusts causing her breasts to bounce deliciously as he leaned in to kiss her. Awryen met his thrusts with her own, bucking up against his as he slowly sped up.

“ _Fuck_ , you’re tight,” he panted raising up and grabbing under her hips, lifting them off the mattress to get more leverage.

“Varian…!”

She moaned his name, her hips undulating against his as his thrusts grew sharper, harder. Her head was thrown back, mouth open as she panted, a flush high in her cheeks and spreading down her chest. At some point, she had curled her tail under him, letting his balls slide along the skin as she curled it along his back.

A throaty moan was met with the movement, the extra stimulation making him wilder in his thrusts, his eyes on hers, glowing a soft gold as he bucked into her.

Awryen could feel the pull in her belly, growing sharper by the moment. She slid a hand down along her stomach before dipping her finger against her clit, rubbing along to his movements.

“ _F-fuck!_ ”

She could feel her walls tightening around him as the burn built hotter and hotter. Her breath hitched.

_“Vare-!”_

White burst behind her eyes once again, brighter, a scream falling from her lips, her hand slick, still rubbing her clit, sending her hips into a continuous roll as she met his wild thrusts.

With a low roar, Varian fell forward on a hand, his other in a bruising grip around her hip before he slammed into her; once, twice, the third time leaving him shuddering. Warmth pooled low in her belly as he gave two more shallow thrusts before he let go of her hip and sank down on top of her.

Both were panting. His breath warmed her neck as Awryen tried to regain the use of her mind, eyes blurry as she blinked them back into focus. She shifted slightly, feeling the zing as his cock dragged against her, still slightly hard. Varian blew a puff of breath against her neck, causing her skin to pebble a bit before he pushed up, sliding out of her.

A hand cupped her jaw and he kissed her, less hungry this time. Tender. Then Varian was crawling out of the bed and heading for his washroom.

Still reeling from the orgasms she had received, Awryen barely noted his presence until she felt a warm, wet cloth start to wipe the mess left behind away. It tickled, sending sparks through her skin and she softly moaned as he wiped up her sex.

“ _Really…?_ So soon?”

His question was teasing, the heat behind his words promising more once they were both ready once again.

She flushed as she sat up, swinging her legs off the bed to sit right in front of him. Though now soft, she saw his cock twitch and she smirked up at him before she stood up slow, letting her breasts slide along his skin. Standing nearly nose to nose with him, she brushed a hand over him, already feeling the swell once again before she turned from him and sashayed into his washroom, closing the door on a wink.

* * *

Varian pounced on her as soon as she had left his washroom, leaving her a quivering mess as he moved slower within her, her back curved up against his chest as she rested her head along his shoulder. Her tail was resting to the side, curled over his hip and down, tucked under him once again, brushing against him.

Awryen had an arm thrown behind his head, her hand latched to his hair as her other hand gripped his, his fingers slick and grinding against her clit. His other arm was wrapped around her front, hand massaging her breast.

He would occasionally speak to her in between biting her shoulder, voice low, wrecked, and filthy as he fucked her slowly, cock sliding and dragging along the sensitive nerves leading away from her clit.

When she came the third time, he had to hold her in place, for her legs had nearly gone completely boneless, a low moan shuddering from her. He sped up slightly, the thrusting going deeper as he slowly let her go, pushing her into the mattress as he gripped her hips.

It was not long before he came again himself. The new angle forced him to penetrate deeper, hitting that _spot._ Though she had just orgasmed, it caused more sparks to flash about her vision. She keened as she felt the warmth fill her belly again, Varian still rocking against her as he spent himself.

When he pulled out again, he let her hips fall. Grabbing the washcloth, he cleaned her once more before he pulled her to him, disregarding the covers around them as he spooned her, his arms wrapped about her waist.

Awryen sighed, completely spent and sated, her eyes drooping slightly as she felt Varian tuck his chin against her shoulder.

“ _Wow…_ ”

He chuckled lowly, the vibrations sending tingles up her back, causing her to wriggle against him.

He sucked in a breath.

“ _Rye_ …keep _doing_ that and we’ll _never_ get any sleep,” the growl in his voice deep as he nuzzled at her ear before nipping it.

“Like you _need_ it, Lo’gosh.”

She felt him still and Awryen feared she had maybe crossed a line before he reached for her opposite cheek and turned her head to him, deftly avoiding her horns. His eyes were once again a soft gold and the smirk on his face made her swallow hard.

“You’re _right._ Let’s see if we can get you to _number four…_ ”

* * *

Bonus art!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew!! This is the logest thing I've written and it happens to be more smut than anything. Heh!! :3


	10. Day 10 - Tainted (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awryen realizes the two Wrynns enjoy riling her up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I originally wanted to do an AUish fic with the two of them (Varian/Awryen) being corrupted by the Legion, but...I decided not to. I wanted to go a fluff route instead.

“No.”

“Awryen, please! I thought you _liked_ this story,” Anduin pleaded, holding out a playbill. His sky blue eyes were comically big, a pout sitting at his lips, the bottom one quivering. Written in bold, curved letters on the booklet was the name _Wicket_.

“I said _no._ ”

“Weren’t you _bemoaning_ a few weeks ago that you _wanted_ a night at the theater?”

Awryen slid her narrowed eyes to the smirking king, still sitting at his desk, hands clasped in front of him. They had met in his study to discuss plans for the evening. Anduin had been curious and joined them. Or so she thought.

“ _That_ is not the story of _Wicked_. Those hozen _tainted_ the original story! A story of a girl, _strong_ with magical talent, black hair and ostracized for her strikingly odd colored skin, befriending the most unlikely of people; a bubbly blonde with a _high opinion_ of herself and yet rather self sacrificing when she _needed_ to be! The other _still_ shunned and turned upon when she _refuses_ to aid the Wizard and his advisor in their _damning_ schemes?! _Wicket_ is _NOTHING_ like that!”

Her breathless, impassioned response caused two sets of brows to raise, their eyes glancing at one another before the older of the two started chuckling.

“Alright, _alright_. We won’t see _Wicket_. It’s not even being shown at the _nicer_ theater in the city,” Varian said, his hands held up in front of him in a placating manner. Then he grinned, “Though the _flush_ on your face was worth the trick.”

The woman before him spluttered, her face flushing even more as she realized it had been nothing more than a joke that both of the Wrynns had pulled on her. Her eyes lit on Anduin, who had his own mouth covered, stifling a laugh as his eyes pleaded her forgiveness.

“You two are _cruel_ ,” Awryen sniffed, turning her nose up, tail trashing slightly as she folded her arms. “It’s only my _favorite_ play of all time, and _you two_ decided to poke fun.”

Still chuckling, the king stood from his desk and moved around it to the agitated woman standing away from it. She turned her head from him, eyes closed, nose still raised and brow twitching in annoyance as she felt his hands rest on her shoulders. She heard the prince step up beside her and cracked open an eye, seeing a genuine smile on his face.

A little taken aback by Anduin’s smile, she turned her confused gaze upon Varian, whose smirk had slid into a soft smile of his own.

“I’m sorry, Rye. I know how _much_ you love that play. I know how much you love the _book_ ,” he said, hands creeping up her neck to cup her face. She saw the young prince avert his eyes slightly, an embarrassed tint of pink on his cheeks. He coughed slightly.

“Which is _why…_ ” the king said, a playful lilt entering that deep voice of his. Pulling his hands away and digging into an inner pocket of his tunic, he retrieved a small piece of hardened parchment and handed it to her.

Taking the card, Awryen’s eyes widened, lighting up as an excited smile popped along her face.

“In three weeks, the _Elwynn Grove Theater Troupe_ will be in Stormwind after they leave Iron Forge. I _believe_ they’ll be performing the _correct_ version, yes?”

With an excited shriek, the draenei threw her arms around him, causing him to catch her and spin around slightly. She caught sight of Anduin, beaming at the two of them as he rubbed the back of his head.

“I saw it a few nights ago, my lady. _Needless_ to say, I made _sure_ father knew about it,” he said, flush still in his cheeks. He was not used to such affectionate displays from his father. Then his smile turned into a small smirk, looking remarkably like his father. “I _do admit_ that I also find it amusing how _offended_ you get every time _Wicket_ is even mentioned.”

Mouth dropping open at the admission, Awryen felt her face flush anew as Varian let out a deep laugh, his son joining in with him. The both of them had finally succumbed to the amusement of the whole situation.

Poor Awryen could only groan before she huffed and stomped out of the room. She heard them call out to her, but she continued her way down the hall, nose once again turned up in annoyance.

A few servants had to skirt around her, many bemused at her antics, sharing knowing looks with their brethren as she passed.

Inside, however, Awryen was giddy with excitement. Not only would she be seeing her favorite play, with Varian and Anduin no less, it gave her the opportunity to dress up. She enjoyed the flowy dresses and adornments, but rarely had the opportunity to partake, what with her duties to the Alliance and to Azeroth.

Her annoyed stomping slipped into a near skip as she mentally reminded herself to let Nakara know about the night. No doubt she would have an outfit in mind for her as the woman positively drooled at the opportunity to set her up with the king.


	11. Day 11 - Tickly (post Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poor Varian still can't catch a break.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a headcanon I have. No more, no less. :V
> 
> Also, I'm sorry for not posting the correct days here!! I must have zoned out yesterday. That's kind of what happens when you're adjusting to a new schedule change and your body wants SLEEP. (also new pre-patch events)

Varian was busy trying to get dressed. He had just left the small washroom of the inn they were currently residing in for the night when he heard the soft steps of hooves sneak up behind him. Deciding to play her game, he pretended that he had not heard her approach...that is until he felt her fingers ghost up his sides before poking into his arm pits.

Jerking up straight, he immediately brought his arms down, hard, to trap the damning draenei’s hands against his side.

“ _Fuck,_ Rye!!”

His exclamation was loud, while holding in a stifled laugh. The woman behind him was giggling before he swiftly turned, his hands darting out to grab her wrists and raising them above her head.

“I was _curious_ , Vare. I wanted to see if you were still ticklish or not.”

It was a valid curiosity, he had to admit. Though he wondered if it was more psychosomatic as opposed to an actual thing these days, what with his decidedly not truly human body. Either way, it was a moot point. He was still ticklish, _dammit_.

Varian focused back in when he felt Awryen shift in his grip and rub up against his chest, a suggestive glint her eyes.

“Does it still _stoke the fire_ , Vare…?”

Growling at her, he separated her hands. Still gripping them, he began to push her backwards towards the room’s bed before he tipped her onto the mattress, following her down and caging her in with his arms braced around her head.

“Does _this_ answer your question?”

Before she could answer him, he kissed her. Sliding a knee up onto the bed and in-between her legs, he rubbed up against her, causing her to arch into his touch as his tongue plunged into her mouth. Her hands had buried themselves into his much shorter hair, mussing it up slightly as she pulled at it, prompting a groan in response.

Before things could get more heated, however, Varian pulled back and away from the bed. Smirking at her, he willed himself to calm the thrumming in his blood. He was immensely pleased at her frustrated whine.

They did have plans for the evening, after all. He was not going to allow their reservation at _That’s a Moray_ to be wasted. It boasted the best crab outside of Upton Borough and he desperately wanted to indulge in one his favorite foods.

His second favorite would come _after_.

“Come on, _Rye_. Dinner awaits.”


	12. Day 12 - Promise (Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian gives the last bit of his heart to her, before he leaves to face his destiny.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a prompt that's already titled "angst" but I could not help but make this one ptretty angsty. :V

Ships as far as the eye could see. Above her, one of their last few ariships, was awaiting her last few passengers before flying to the far off shores where the Legion had once again stepped foot.

Awryen was hidden away in small, not oft used garden overlooking the harbor. Oh did she dread this day. At Khadgar’s behest, and his _own_ insistence, Varian would be leaving with most of the fleet. They had to push the Legion back before it could get a strong enough foothold in the door. They had done so before, a millennia ago; twice over when they stopped Archimonde at Hyjal and Kill’jaden at the Sunwell.

They would do so again. They had to. So they could all come home.

So that _he_ could come home.

Leaves crunched underfoot behind her and she turned. Her worried eyes sweept over the king, fully dressed in his plate armor, the silvery blue and gold gleaming in the sunlight. Shalamayne was strapped to his back. Further back behind him was his bold gryphon, Goldmane, awaiting his master.

She would not be leaving with this first group. Wrynn was resting and so was her gryphon, Featherheart. It had only been a few weeks since she came back from Draenor, leaving the garrison there in the capable hands of the Shadowmoon Valley draenei, wishing them all the best as they picked up the pieces to start over once more.

Her companions were exhausted. And so were her closest allies. Nakara, Jus’ma, and Eeryn were still on their respective sabbaticals when the news came that the Legion was back; Gul’dan had made his way here, leading the charge.

The four of them were scrambling to get supplies together and the rest they so sorely needed. This was why they would be leaving on the second batch of ships.

Which meant she would not be by her king’s side. Not yet.

It terrified her. She knew the Legion’s strength, its absolute power and destruction.

“It’s almost time, Rye.”

Varian’s voice was soft, low for her ears only. She met him in the center of the little garden, hands reaching for his gloved ones and squeezing them tightly.

“I know… _just_ …promise me. _Promise_ me you’ll watch yourself. At least until I can make it there,” she pleaded, her voice breaking slightly as she reached up to thread her fingers into his hair before sliding her hand down to cup his cheek. He leaned into the touch, eyes slipping closed as he raised her other hand to his lips, leaving a lingering kiss upon her knuckles.

Eyes opened, sapphire boring into her own, Varian took her hand. Rifling in a hidden pocket of his cloak, he pulled something from it and placed it firmly to the palm of her hand.

Sitting there was a ring. The Alliance symbol gleamed in the sunlight, only the face was different. A wolf’s as opposed to the standard lion. Squinting slightly, she could just make out the telltale shape of the scar that crisscrossed her king’s face.

Feeling her heart starting to thud in her chest, Awryen turned her gaze up to his, eyes shining despite their soft glow.

“The only _promise_ I can give to you, Awryen,” he whispered, leaning down to rest his forehead against hers. ” _I love you_ , and I _always_ will. I’ll be _with_ you, one way or another.”

Tears slid down her face as she clutched the ring tightly in her hand, bringing her fist to her lips. Her eyes had squeezed shut, prompting more tears to flow when she felt Varian tip her chin up and kiss her, lips firm against hers. His tongue insisted upon entry and she yielded, hers brushing against his.

His hand had snaked around to cup her head at the juncture where her skull met her neck, his gloved fingers threading into her hair. Her arm not trapped between them was snug around his waist, clinging to the thick fabric of his belt as she pushed up into the kiss.

Need for air forced them apart, both panting as he ran the pads of his thumbs across her cheeks, his hands cupping her face as he kissed her softly one last time before he murmured another soft “I love you” and turned to leave.

Nothing else could be said. _Everything_ was in the open now. Their need, their love, their hope, their fear. The ring was a promise, in so many ways. A future. A painful past. A talisman.

Once he was gone from her blurry sight, Awryen unclenched her hand and looked at the ring. It was too big for her fingers, but she knew she had some left over true iron in her packs. She would be able to fashion a chain before she was to leave, so that this one _tangible_ representation of his heart would always hang next hers.

* * *

Bonus art!!


	13. Day 13 - Angst (Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awryen gets to tell Anduin what happened that day at the Shore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is purely headcanon for how Awryen reacts after she gets back to Stormwind. I'll talk more in the footer notes.
> 
> Also, this was meant for Fictober day 14, but I never posted it. Here's the sentence prompt for it:
> 
> “you better leave now”

The new king made a morose picture as he sat on the throne...the throne that rightfully belonged to his _father_ , he felt. All around him were the various leaders of the Alliance, paying their respects for the man who should have been with them that day. The news had come in quickly, thanks to a few handy mages, and the response had been immediate. Stormwind was mourning heavily with Iron Forge having been among the first to make their presence known in the port city.

Tyrande and Malfurion came as quickly as they could and were the furthest away from the empty casket, silently praying to Elune and Goldrinn for his father’s safe passing.

Muradin of Clan Bronzebeard was beside himself. Which, Anduin acknowledged, did not surprise him at all. He knew the two of them had been very good friends.

Velen was beside him, providing a comforting presence at his back.

However…his aunt Jaina was a different story. She was angry. So angry, and he had no idea how to feel about what she was saying. The Horde had left them to die? Left his _father_ to die? Was it true?

 _‘It can’t be true…Baine would never have done so…’_ he thought.

He vaguely heard the quiet murmuring in the room come to a stop as a new person entered the throne room, though Jaina did not seem to hear it herself.

“Dalaran will help protect the Eastern Kingdoms, but I will _not_ allow the Horde to set foot within _my_ city!”

Anduin saw who entered the throne room and he knew that shattered look all too well. It was upon his own face as he turned to his aunt and said, “We _must not_ splinter like this... not _now_. _Please_ , Jaina!”

The older woman scoffed at him, “You disappoint me, King of Stormwind-“

**_SMACK!!_ **

The young king snapped his attention to the newcomer, who was huffing in rage, her arm still out stretched and hand curled into a fist.

Gasps could be heard around the room as Jaina went sprawling across the floor. Blood trickled from her lips as she looked up in surprise, her hand cradling her now swelling cheek.

The rest of the Alliance leadership was stunned at the righteous display of anger from the newcomer in the room and the guards were slow to react.

_“WHERE WERE YOU?!”_

Awryen, the draenei ranger well known to everyone in the room, was irate, tears streaming down her face as she snarled and stalked towards the woman stumbling to get back to her feet. Her tail trashing in rage and her ears had laid back. Anduin saw movement as the guards began to make their way towards her, but he cut them off with a raised hand and a firm shake of his head.

“HOW COULD YOU?! _YOU COULD HAVE SAVED HIM!!”_

Another hush fell upon the room at her words. What had she meant by that? Anduin watched the two women face each other down, sitting straighter than he had been all day, his hand resting lightly upon his cudgel.

“BY THE LIGHT, _WHY DID YOU DISAPPEAR?!_ You were NOWHERE to be found in that final battle!! YOU COULD HAVE SINGLE HANDEDLY SAVED THE SHIP. You could have _saved Varian_. Your magical reach is strong and he _WOULD NOT HAVE HAD TO DIE!!”_

Anduin was staring at his aunt, confused a little bit betrayed. Not there…?

“I...I _couldn’t_ , I was indisposed- besides, the Horde-!!”

“DO NOT BRING THE _HORDE_ INTO THIS!!” Awryen spat out, cutting off what she more than likely perceived as feeble excuses. “We were _split up_. We have no idea what _they_ were facing!! It was a ploy by the Legion!! They split us up on purpose and they had to retreat!! THAT WAS NO DIFFERENT THAN WHAT WE WOULD HAVE DONE!!”

“I’m _sorry_ , I was-“

“ _I DON’T CARE_. Your excuses won’t bring Varian back _. YOUR EXCUSES GOT HIM KILLED!!”_

_“I WAS INJURED!!”_

_“WE ALL WERE!!”_

**“ENOUGH!!”**

Their jaws snapped shut as Anduin stood from his throne, a hard frown upon his face. He turned to Awryen first, bidding her to back down before he turned to the archmage. He eyed her; his instinct to heal her was strong, but the ranger would not have attacked her so harshly for something other than a perceived betrayal. And from what the archmage had said…

“Aunt Jaina, I think **you better leave now**. You won’t find enough sympathetic ears at the moment,” he said quietly, but with no less authority. He kept his eyes trained on her.

Jaina was rubbing at her swollen cheek and glared at the young king before she turned away from him.

“Sooner or later, you will see the truth. You _all_ will!”

The older woman teleported from the room, leaving a subdued silence in her wake. Anduin looked around him, seeing eyes being averted from the two standing in the middle of the room. Velen could only shake his head.

“My father dead... _disaster_ on the Broken Shore... Jaina fixed on revenge... Everything is _falling apart_ ,” he smurmured to himself before he turned to walk over to the distressed draenei. “Awryen?”

The women before him had not stopped glaring at the spot where Jaina had been, tears still sliding down her face slowly.

“ _Awryen._ ”

He saw her flinch slightly and look up at him, her glare falling away to a wide eyed look of shock.

“ _Come with me._ ”

The young king gently took her by an elbow and led her to the doors that led further into the keep. Before he led them through, he looked over his shoulder and addressed the room at large.

“I’ll be back shortly.”

* * *

They weaved through the halls in silence. Anduin had moved his hand from her elbow and settled an arm about Awryen’s shoulders as he steered her towards a small, private courtyard that was a favorite haunt of his...and of his father.

Once he pushed her through the doors, he closed them to ensure as much privacy as possible and led her to a bench to sit down.

He watched her quietly, her eyes glassy and mind obviously elsewhere. He sighed.

“Awryen…is it _true?_ What you said?”

It was a few moments before he finally got a reaction out of the woman beside him.

Nodding jerkily, she croaked, “Yes. We’d tracked Gul’dan to the gates of the Tomb of Sargeras...and...in hindsight, it was a _trap_. He was flanked by so many demons…high ranking demons…many of whom we’d fought before…”

She sighed, a shuddering release of breath as new tears began to flow freely.

“It wasn’t long after that we heard the horns bellowing and the Horde retreated. Gul’dan began sending wave after wave of demons our way and we knew this was a lost cause, so Var- your _father_ ordered a retreat. Greymane was so angry…Jaina wasn’t the _only one_ who believed the Horde abandoned us...”

Anduin listened quietly as he began to absent mindedly run his hand across her back in a soothing motion.

“We…we reached the gunship, but Gul’dan…he conjured some kind of _beast_ of a demon. A Fel Reaver, just much….bigger; _worse_. I don’t know what it was, but it grabbed the gunship. Many of us were lost as the ship titled. I barely held on myself and your father was clinging to the ladder with all of his strength. Genn and I were trying to get him into the ship, but… _he_ …”

Here the draenei started to stutter, the grief bubbling up strong as she struggled to get the words out.

“He… _he gave me the letter_ …I was bringing it to you. And that’s when he let go of the ship and plunged down to kill that _monster_. Genn had to grab me or I would have followed after him.”

Awryen ducked her head and wiped at her face, but it was a fruitless endeavor.

“I was frantic!! I looked for _anyone_ who could have helped save him and that’s when I noticed that _Jaina_ was nowhere to be found. Every other mage was injured and Nakara, who had been injured badly. Our paladins were depleted of their holy powers and we had no way to bring him back to the ship or fight against the reaver. But _Jaina..._ _she_ could have saved him!! But she wasn’t there!!”

She hiccupped as the young king tightened his hold on her shoulders, her body trembling.

“She wasn’t there. She wasn’t there!! _SHE WASN’T THERE!!”_

An anguished wail left her lips.

_“HE’S GONE!!”_

Awryen buried her face in her hands, her body shaking with the force of her grief and Anduin finally turned her to him and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tight to his chest as she poured her soul out.

Tears tracked down his own face as he screwed his eyes shut and let out a shuddering breath before he buried his face into her hair.

The small courtyard was filled with the wails of a broken hearted draenei. Anduin knew how much she had loved his father, and vice versa. He himself cared a great deal for her and had been waiting eagerly for his father to finally ask for this woman’s hand, but they had held off.

And now, those hopes had been dashed. She was adrift in heartache and he was so very lost to a role he was not ready for.

So they sat and gave each other the comfort they so sorely needed in that moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What prompted this headcanon is the fact that there are still people who didn't really pay attention to the ending cinematic of the Broken Shore scenario. Long story short, Jaina is _missing_. Right up until the cinematic triggers, she's there in the battle group as they face down Gul'dan's horde of high level demons, right? But once the cinematic starts and goes through to it's heartbreaking conclusion, _she is nowhere to be found_.
> 
> Also, the demons don't attack immediately in this once they're in Stormwind, that demon hunter makes it there later. *shrug* Mostly because I could not fit that scenario into this and it make sense. _*shrug*_
> 
> This was my TRYING-to-fix-a-plot-hole fic. :V So in this, Jaina wasn't there in the last fight. She had disappeared somewhere right before the split.


	14. Day 14 - Armor Swap (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What it says on the tin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is mostly just an excuse to post artwork, though I did include a tiny ficlet that, were it not 80 words over, would be a drabble. :V

Varian raised his brow at the altered garment that Awryen was holding up for him.

“…did you steal this from _Shaw?_ ”

Glowing blue eyes rolled upwards at him before she spoke.

“ _No._ I specifically asked Nakara to make these for you,” she said, an excited, mischievous grin sliding across her face. “I thought we could go as _each other_ this year!! I’ve always wanted to wear that armor of yours.”

Varian only grinned at her before he pushed her hands down to lean into her space, his nose nearly brushing hers.

“If you wanted to _wear it_ , you needed only to _ask…_ ”

Heat bloomed in her cheeks as he kissed her nose before he pulled back, bringing a hand up to his chin in thought. “Though I highly _doubt_ it would stay on you, seeing how it’s rather… _big_.”

“ _Vare…_ ” she growled in warning. “We have a party to get to, _dammit._ ”

Teeth bared in a wolfish smile met her annoyed gaze.

“Have you ever heard the concept of being _‘fashionably late?’_ ”

“ _Varian!!_ ”

“ _Alright, alright,_ love. You win…for _now._ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO sorry I'm so off these last few days. My daughter's been glued to my hip all weekend, so I just haven't been able to do much for myself, on top of the need for sleep. But I'm still working on these, I promise!!


	15. Day 15 - With a Pet (Wrath - BfA)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Key moments through the eyes of Wrynn, Awryen's faithful dire wolf.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I...went a little complicated with this one, but it was kind of fun to try and write from a wholey different perspective.
> 
> Also...Wrynn is huge. If he's on the bed, assume the bed has been adjusted magically. >_>

**Stormwind, before The Battle of Undercity**

* * *

Wrynn was a very large wolf. Which was not a surprise since he was a wolf that originally came from Draenor. He and his pack mates had been rescued by a band of Rangari before they had left with the rest of the draenei people aboard the Exodar for worlds unknown.

Only a pup when the Exodar crashed upon Azeroth, Wrynn was one of the animals that suffered from the radiation effects of the ship. Plus, he was one of two pups that survived the initial crash.

Sick and unsure of his fate, he was ecstatic when a young Rangari came to his rescue and gave him some kind of potion to battle the sickness.

Afterwards, Wrynn refused to leave her side. Though she did try to give him away a few times, unsure if she could actually take care of him with her duties and soon to be traveling, he stubbornly kept returning to her. Eventually, she relented, took him on, and trained him up. Soon, he would leave with her for lands unknown.

Over the course of those next few years, he grew. And grew. _And grew_. Eventually, he was big enough to be a mount, if his mistress so chose, but she rarely used him as such. Something about feeling guilty of using him as a pack animal. He obviously did not understand, but whatever made his mistress happy, made him happy.

However, his name was not always “Wrynn.” No, for the longest time, she simply called him “Pup.” They had both gotten used to her calling him that while he was still small and weak from the radiation that it had stuck.

One day, that changed.

A human male, who smelled an awful lot like a wolf himself, had ridden out to meet with the new comers of his Alliance. Many of the draenei, after the fighting in Outland, had decided to join in against the fighting in that cold tundra laden land to the north of their adopted home.

Apparently, this human male had a peculiar scar that matched the one he had.

The poor wolf had gotten a face full of shrapnel from a mine in Outland. Most of the damage had been healed, but a stretch of scar tissue still bisected across his face and down one eye. When his mistress saw the other male, she was amused and decided to call him “Wrynn.”

Now, Wrynn watched the human male, Varian Wrynn, as he sized up his mistress. She had just left him with a hunk of metal that seemed to be of some import to him. Interestingly, his keen nose smelled something he caught whiffs of from others as he and his mistress traveled the world. This smell usually followed along behind mated pairs and he wondered...

His mistress had already turned to leave the throne room, but Wrynn stayed there, sizing the human male up himself. Once again, there was that smell of a wolf...it intrigued him, but it also made him stand up straight. This was a pack leader. Though his eyes were not that of a wolf’s, a resolute strength resided within them, which Wrynn had seen in the pack leaders he had seen throughout their travels. Which he saw everyday in the eyes of his mistress.

She had good taste, it seemed.

Snorting his approval, he turned on his paws and followed after his mistress.

* * *

**A Few Years Later - Pandaria**

* * *

Wrynn’s mistress was in a bad way. She had healers constantly coming in and out of her room, working for hours at a time to mend her broken body. Oh how he _wished_ he had ripped out the throat of the orc who had done this!! The feel and taste of his blood would have been like a fine wine. But alas, he had not. For he, too, had been injured...

The foul creature had backhanded him hard. Wrynn had hit a rocky outcrop and nearly broken his spine. Instead, one of his back legs had shattered on impact, rendering him unable to protect his mistress further.

He had watched in horror as the orc picked his mistress up and slammed her into the ground, where a horrible crack could be heard echoing on the wind. To add to his fear and rage, the orc had also slammed his massive fist into her hip. The scream that followed would haunt his dreams forever more...

However, his ever strong mistress had fought through her terrible injuries to save the human wolf pup, whom he could barely smell. The poor pup’s life had been on a teetering edge as the smell of blood permeated the air.

Wrynn dragged himself across the rocky ground, intent on reaching them as the dwarf woman who had brought them here had come out of her hiding spot. He could smell the fear, sorrow, and rage upon the young woman as she frantically started moving pieces of that broken bell off the human pup.

All the while, his mistress kept using her meager healing abilities to keep him alive just as he made it to her side, resting his head on her otherwise unoccupied arm.

They had gone back to the garrison by way of hearthstone and had appeared to a shocked crowd in the middle of the upstairs main room.

Unfortunately, Wrynn was going in and out of consciousness as his mistress struggled to breathe and he could not make sense of what happened much after that.

Voices were jumbled, loud and urgent.

 _“Where_ is _he?!...I should’ve sent you back to Stormwind..”_

_“Send for Velen!!”_

_“Awryen, no…!”_

_“I will_ end _Garrosh for this…”_

Ears perked up as the door to his mistress’s room opened. He was unsure of the actual time, but it had to be after midnight. The room was very dark, despite the curtains of the window being left open. Only a sliver of the moon could be seen; the new moon was only a few days away.

Her pack leader came in and Wrynn relaxed, though he watched the human closely as he carefully grabbed a chair to sit beside the bed.

No doubt the human had come from visiting his pup, as he had rarely left his side over the last few days. 

As he watched him, the human turned his keen sapphire eyes, so like his own if his mistress was correct, to him.

“Hey, boy...”

Wrynn’s eyes slid closed as the pack leader brought a hand up to his cheek and began to scratch and rub at the fur, slowly moving his fingers up his ear. The wolf let his head tilt into the touch, huffing a low whimper.

As he continued his scratches, the human turned his gaze upon his mistress and Wrynn felt the air around them change a bit. A melancholy permeated the room as those blue eyes softened.

“I have _no idea_ if you understand...but seeing them _both_ on the ground, _barely_ hanging on...I thought my very world was about to _crack_...,” he said, before snorting softly, “ _Again._ ”

Turning his gaze back to the now attentive wolf, he continued, “ _I don’t..._ had they _both_ died, I don’t think I would have been able to recover the pieces. _Not this time._ ”

Carefully, the wolf moved his bulk as best he could in order to lay his head closer to the human, nudging his nose up into the hand that had just left his ears. Wrynn whimpered softly, urging the human male to pet his head again, trying his best to comfort the obviously hurting man. Only hesitating a few moments, the pack leader rested his large hand upon his head once again; absently running his fingers though the thick fur.

“ _I love her_ ,” he whispered. Wolf watched as their pack leader reached his other hand out to cup his mistress’s face, fingers curling into her hair as his thumb lightly skimmed her cheek. “It’s been _years_ since I’ve felt this strongly about someone else. I was unsure if I should be feeling this way...but seeing Anduin take to her...and her never placing my title above our friendship outside of our professional relationship... _it was done_.”

Those keen blue eyes turned back to his as Wrynn watched him.

“She _stole my heart_ almost from day one...and I didn’t realize it until recently. _Then this..._ ”

The wolf’s nose twitched as he scented salt in the air before he raised his head to nose at the human’s face. His tongue lolled out and swiped at his face, tasting the salty tears as his mistress’s mate, for there was nothing else he could be as far as the wolf was concerned, squeezed his eyes shut.

The man’s hands gripped at his fur before burying his face into his neck.

Wrynn closed his eyes and just rested his jaw against their pack leader’s shoulder, his tail slowly swaying, willing the two people he considered _his_ as much happiness as he could muster, despite the fear radiating off the human in front of him. They sat that way for who knew how long before the human pulled away, swiping a hand across his eyes and face, wiping away the tears.

Before he stood up, he reached out and gripped Wrynn’s face before placing his forehead against the soft fur of his own.

“ _Thank you._ You may be only a wolf, but _I_ can see how much you love her, how _deep_ your loyalty is. _Thank you_ for allowing me to be here.”

Cocking his head to the side after the human pulled away, he _“wuffed”_ softly and nosed at his cheek.

With one last pat, the human stood up and leaned down to his mistress, placing a soft kiss to her forehead.

“ _I’ll wait for you._ ”

Wrynn had a feeling he was not supposed to hear that, as it was whispered so softly even he had to strain to hear it. But it did not matter. Their pack leader long ago earned his approval and he simply wished for his mistress to let him in. Once the human was gone, Wrynn shuffled back to his original spot and rested his head on his mistress’s stomach and slipped into sleep.

* * *

**A Few More Years Later - Legion**

* * *

Wrynn sat heavily upon the wooden deck of the air ship. His side was on fire, but he barely noticed it. Clung to his fur and wails muffled into his neck, was his mistress.

She was absolutely shattered.

Their pack leader, her mate, had sacrificed himself to save their ship and allow them to retreat. It had struck a hard blow to the both of them. The older human who also smelled of wolf was broken, if the soft whimpers were anything to go by. He would have to repay the human at some point for saving his mistress. The older pack leader took his role seriously, keeping her safe and ensuring the pack that was left upon the ship were now safe and on their way home. But that did not stop the man from releasing his sorrow.

It permeated the ship. All around them were pack members in various states of injury and emotional turmoil. They had lost many to this foul legion of beasts and demons. But the worst of it by far was his mistress and her closest pack mates, who were with her on the wooden floor.

The orc woman had her arms wrapped tightly around her middle from behind, face buried against the back of her neck. The male draenei was kneeling beside them, his arm about her shoulders as he struggled to stifle the flow of tears down his face. Their night elf friend was curled up against the wolf's side, face burried in her knees.

Succumbing to the shattered sorrow around him, Wrynn lifted his head and let out a low mournful howl. Only a few moments passed before a chorus of howls joined his, the first coming from the older pack leader, who had transformed in response.

* * *

**Months after the Broken Shore**

* * *

His nose twitched, though it should not have been a surprise to him. There were a myriad of strange and foul smells that surrounded them on the Broken Shore. He, his mistress, and her pack mates were on a mission, one that Illidan himself asked them to complete. Apparently, there was a foul demon terrorizing, not only their own, but the Horde and Legion itself.

But this smell was...different. Underneath the rancid smells of broken demon bodies, there was the faint musky scent of...wolf. And a familiar wolf at that.

Wrynn stopped, his hackles rising in warning and a growl reverberating around him.

“Wrynn? What is it?”

The mistress came up beside him, her swords at the ready as she peered into the green mists.

His sapphire eyes lit upon a figure moving in the distance, barely visible through the swirling mists. Beside him, the draenei woman gripped her weapons harder as she realized there was danger approaching them. Her pack mates fanned out around them. The orc was behind them, with the night elf and the other draenei at her sides.

Closer the figure came, an imposing one that gripped two massive swords, one at its side, the other resting upon its shoulder. Long hair blew in the wind, which was half way gathered up.

His mistress stiffened at his side and he glanced at her before lighting his gaze back upon the figure.

The mists had cleared for but a moment and before them was a man. Though the hair was familiar, it was the face. The scars were the most telling, but they were...different. Jagged, glowing, and around his face were a few extra that had not been there before.

And the eyes...what had once been a vibrant sapphire, like his own, were a sickly greenish yellow. They glowed faintly in the shadows surrounding them.

A strangled noise escaped his mistress and she nearly dropped her swords before she strengthened her grip. She had finally realized who was standing before them. Her pack mates had also made soft exclamations of surprise and anxiety.

“ _Varian...?_ ”

The soft question made the figure cock its head, his eyes sparking a mild curiosity before he smirked...then attacked.

* * *

Wrynn watched the man in the special cage his mistress’s pack mate had created for him. Their old pack leader was pacing, a silent snarl on his face as those greenish eyes locked upon him. He was unsure why exactly his mistress’s mate was here and alive, but he knew something was wrong. He smelled the same, but also smelled of the stink of sulfur.

The man growled at him. Wrynn, however, did not shrink back and bare his neck to him, as he would have done previously. No, he growled back, his lips pulled back in a savage snarl. Right now, his pack leader was sick and he was not going to cow to him until his pack could figure out how to cure him. And he would protect his mistress at any cost, even if that meant harming her mate.

* * *

**After Teldrassil**

* * *

Wrynn happily ran ahead of his mistress, chasing after the rabbits that had been grazing in the field before them. Behind him, the draenei was happy, for the first time in over a year.

Her mate was back, whole, if not entirely human. And they had a new member to their little pack.

Giggles followed after Wrynn as he darted from side to side and crouched in the grass. A little female half-night elf pup, her black hair pulled into small pigtails, bounded after him, prompting him to jump from his crouches and sprint quickly out of her reach before he crouched again. All the while, his tongue was lolling in a panting wolf smile and he yipped at her when she approached.

The sight of their little game brought happy, though slightly bittersweet smiles to his mistress and her mate’s faces.

Finding the little pup had been a fluke and under sad circumstances. While the three of them had been in Darkshore helping fight against the treacherous Horde and save frightened, displaced Night Elven citizens, Wrynn had heard the shrill cries of a small pup in distress. His mistress had found her hiding in a bush, a burn on her left cheek and covered in soot.

In the chaos of the fighting, they had found a couple not too far from her hiding place. A female worgen and a night elf male. The pup’s hair color and waves matched the night elf.

His mistress had rescued her, protecting her from a sudden attack from one of those foul smelling creatures of death. She shielded the pup with her body, expecting a fatal blow. But it had not come, for Wrynn and her mate had descended upon the undead, rending it to pieces. Its partner had shared a similar fate, being rent in half from her mate’s massive blades.

With the pup in tow, the three of them had to leave Darkshore in the capable hands of their Alliance pack and made a quick exit back to Stormwind, hoping to bring the little one to the orphanage there. But alas, it was not meant to be. For the pup refused to leave their sides, having imprinted upon them in the chaos.

Days after the destruction of the great tree, with the refugees arriving in Stormwind, Wrynn’s pack helped where they could before reporting to the young pack leader.

The previous year had changed the young wolf pup, forcing him to grow into a pack leader almost overnight. And that was where his mistress had taken the new pup, hoping that maybe, just maybe, the young pack leader could watch over the new pup.

Her mate had stayed hidden, for the younger pack leader could not see him, could not know of his existence, but everything was for naught. Pup and pack leader would not come to an agreement; she was adamant about staying with her rescuers and he just did not have the time to look after one so young, even though he wanted to.

“I’ve always _wanted_ a younger sister…” he had said, a small, sad smile sitting on his face, as he crouched to hold out a hand to the still reticent pup. But the little one would not leave his mistress’s side, clinging to her leg and peaking out at the pack leader.

Bidding them a sad farewell for the time being, they left their young pack leader to his duties. Wolf, his mistress, her mate, and the new pup left the city, unsure of their future. Their small pack made for Elwynn. Survivors were still being found and nothing else was planned just yet for the Horde, though he knew the young pack leader had plans to attack that foul city across the mountains. Alas, they had nothing else they could truly do until the call for battle came. Healers were needed now and they were not a pack of healers.

So, they took the breather and would enjoy the happiness that had fled them for so long, if only for a moment.


	16. Day 16 - Feeding Birds (Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian takes some comfort in a mundane task.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like the idea of Varian having experience with training gryphons. And thus, this was born.

“Greywing?”

The massive brute of a gryphon perked its head up, turning in the direction of the voice which called to it.

“Dinnertime!”

Giving an excited screech and ruffling his feathers, the beast canted out of its stall in the stables by Karazhan and happily pranced around in front of the former king. At week two of their self imposed exile at the tower, Varian had broached the subject of a mount. He could remember his loyal, gryphon, Goldmane, getting hit by one of those foul fel bats when he had been there on the Broken Shore. His loyal steed had put up a valiant fight, but in the end, was overwhelmed by a group of the disgusting things and had succumbed.

_‘Poor thing...we might have been able to escape had we not been so thoroughly ambushed,’_ he thought, the sardonic thought flitting across his mind. He did feel guilty and sad about him, as the beast had only been following after him. Sighing, he shook his head to clear his morose thoughts and focused in on the new beast in front of him.

Greywing was a gorgeous animal. Awryen had left the tower to look for a beast for him and was able to find him in the wilds of Winterspring. Unique in coloration, the gryphon had the snow white coloration of the one of the standard gryphons with its rump gradually going grey, the feathers along his neck and front snowy white. Yet, his wings were a charcoal grey, which Varian suspected was due in part to the ebon colored beasts they rarely housed.

Unique to him were his eyes. The tawny colored beasts had green eyes where as the white ones had a purple blue. Gold eyes followed the ebon. Greywing’s eyes were a striking green

Regardless, he was a sight and Varian had fell for him as soon as Awryen had brought him to the tower.

The first week had been a challenge. The former king took his time to train him and gain his trust for the massive gryphon was surly. Greywing could be stubborn when he so willed it. But by the third week, the bird was finally in his good graces and he began to train for passenger flight.

Awryen would stop by occasionally to watch him work. It fascinated her, he could tell. When he was still alive and wholly human, Varian rarely had time to truly train with his assigned animals, doing most of it when he had been younger with a little more free time. Otherwise, the stable hands and stable boys and girls were the ones who had their hands in training the beasts. Goldmane had been one of the last he had trained himself.

But...he also knew she would watch him despite giving him space. He knew she still had worries about him. However, as the weeks passed by and they went further into a near three month stay, the worry slipped from her eyes and she could enjoy the simplicity of watching him work.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her coming into the stables, a smile lit across her face. He waited until she joined him, reaching out to caress the feathers along Greywing’s face, eliciting a contented rumble before he turned back to his master, waiting patiently for his meal.

Varian bade for the beast to follow and opened the gate to the stables, letting the beast trot out of the paddock before closing it behind them. He wished fervently for a field, but alas, the desolate grounds of the tower would have to do. In his left hand, he carried a bucket of dead rodents; large rats, rabbits, voles, you name it. Awryen and Wrynn would hunt them during their runs around the tower. What her wolf did not eat, they would capture and save for him.

Stopping a ways from the tower, Varian turned to his newly loyal steed and grinned at him.

“You _know_ what to do.”

Screeching in anticipation, Greywing began to gallop away from them. Reaching into the bucket, Varian grabbed a rabbit and, tossing it once in the air, chucked it as hard as he could away from them. He had stopped days ago being so fascinated by his enhanced strength and privately reveled in it instead. It allowed him to swing and throw things much harder and farther than he had been able to before and in this one instance, it added to the game.

Greywing would happily run and catch his food, grabbing it out of the air with a proud prance before he was ready once again, squawking in impatience as Varian would deliberately withhold the food.

Once half way done with the bucket, he would whistle. For Greywing, that was the signal to leap into the air and fly about for a more challenging game of catch. Rodents would soar into the air. Sometimes the gryphon would catch them high in the air, other times, he would swoop down low close to the ground and snatch them that way. Occasionally, he would get close to him and Awryen and let his feathers skim their hair.

Next to him, Awryen hummed, impressed.

“Vare, I think he’s _ready_ , don’t you? Your training seems to be complete,” she said, watching the beast as he swooped through the air.

Varian shook his head at her before replying, “Another couple of days, Rye. Then we can leave." His eyes slid to her, gaze soft. “He may be ready, yes, _but..._ ”

Smiling a little sadly, he reached for her hand to tug her close.

“ _I’m_ not exactly ready to give up this time with _you._ ”

Varian closed his eyes as she cupped his cheek, feeling her lips ghost over his own before he opened his eyes again.

“I know Vare...but we still have an enemy to face. We’re not done _yet._ The portal to Argus has opened and I want so _desperately_ to stop the Legion...for _you_ and for my _people._ ”

Pressing their foreheads together, Varian let the now empty bucket drop to the ground as he rested the cleaner hand at her hips.

“I understand. Just give me _this..._ then I will follow you for the rest of _eternity._ ”


	17. Day 17 - Dance (post Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awryen reflects on family. Plus, there's dancing. :V

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Straight fluff and rather slice of lifey.
> 
> Also, this was completely inspired by Kingdom Dance from Tangled. So, play that if you want!!
> 
> https://youtu.be/0X0sLw63KLU

It was the time of year for rebirth, growth, and the world to enter back into the light. Awryen watched as the Pandaren of Halfhill and a few other former Alliance and Horde members readied their bustling village for the spring festival. She found that she much preferred their way of celebrating the spring compared to the rest of the Alliance. Well, at least compared to the humans, anyway.

Èleryn was chasing after some of the other children in the village, flitting about the stalls in a game of hide and seek, if she guessed right. Wrynn stayed within eyesight of the little elf, always on watch. Ever since the little girl had joined them, he had taken it as his most important duty to keep watch over her. Awryen silently wondered if he was wishing for a pack of his own...

“Copper for your thoughts?”

The draenei turned to her lover, a smile gracing her features as she slipped her hand into his, absently running her thumb over the scars on his hand.

“Wrynn is very... _protective_ of her. It might be time to find him a mate...don’t you think? Having a female around may also help with Èleryn. There would be the extra protection, not to mention a new playmate. And _eventual_ playmates...”

Varian chuckled at her before he leaned in to kiss her temple.

“Possibly. We’ll have to let him see. He may not settle for the smaller wolves of Azeroth, love.”

“ _Well..._ I _think_ I can still reach Draenor...or we may have to visit Alterac...” she suggested, watching his eyes.

Varian frowned at that. Alterac, for all intents and purposes, was still Horde territory, though the Dwarves would say otherwise. He knew in recent years, however, that the priority of the valley had fallen to the wayside in the wake of, well, _everything else_. Relics and the like were less important when Azeroth was under constant attack. He could not begrudge the Frostwolf Clan their home, however...

“I know Nakara still has contacts in the Horde and she’s _always_ had a relatively friendly relationship with Thrall. I could see if she can contact him. I know he raises frostwolves?”

Still frowning, Varian pondered it. He had no love of the Horde. Even after dying, his views had not changed much. Even in this village, he kept a distance from the former Horde villagers. Yes, he was much more...amenable to working with them now as opposed to outright rebuking them and declaring war ( _‘there’s been too much war’_ ), but that never meant he had to like them. 

Thrall however...well. He could not hate the orc. Yes, he was still pissed about the whole Garrosh thing, but Thrall in himself was a decent being and had always strived for peace. Plus, he had finally killed that murderous orc bastard and that gained all of Varian’s respect. The orc had cleaned up his mess.

Blowing out a sigh, he gazed at the woman standing at his side, thumb still absently rubbing along his hand, waiting for his answer. Soft music began to play in the village as the musicians finally got themselves in order. This was her choice over all, but he could never say no to her anyway.

“ _Do it_. Ask her. Then we’ll go from there.”

Beaming at him, she leaned in to kiss his cheek just as Èleryn ran up to them, excited and pointing back to the way she had come.

“Mama Rye!! Dance!! Come _dance!!_ ”

Varian could only smile at the little girl as she hopped excitedly at their feet, tugging at Awryen’s hand. The draenei cocked her head as she began to follow after the girl, slight confusion playing across her face.

“ _When…?_ ”

“They learned that song a few years ago from one of your Alliance musician groups.”

Varian and Awryen both turned to the voice behind them, finding a beautiful pandaren with a set of peculiar horns sprouting from her head.

“Sun Yii!”

“Hello, Awryen. Varian. _Ah,_ and I see Èleryn is as lively as ever.”

A flute of sorts was playing a soft, lively tune with various percussion instruments and strings playing with it.

As the three adults walked into the center of the festival the tempo picked up and Èleryn was off, skipping between the dancers.

Throwing a smile at Varian and nodding to Sun Yii, Awryen beckoned him to join her as she, too, skipped into the crowd. Not to be out done, Varian joined in. As they danced, the crowd began clapping as they twirled and skipped between partners. They glimpsed Sun Yii flitting about herself.

Varian and Awryen would meet then be whisked away by various partners, shrugging ruefully when they would miss each other.

Èleryn’s delighted laugh could be heard throughout as she also danced with the other children, darting between pairs and under feet. As the dance continued, the tempo increased, signaling the end was coming up fast. Faster and faster they all danced, skipping and bowing before finally, Awryen and Varian whirled away from their respective partners and met; his left hand upon her hip, her right hand upon his shoulder while they clasped their opposite hands together just slightly above their waists. They were pressed together, both breathing fast, though she knew Varian was doing it out of habit rather than actually being out of breath.

Color rose in their cheeks before Varian unclasped their hands, cupped her cheek and kissed her. Around her the Pandaren and their guest villagers were watching with interest and a small cheer went up around them as they kissed. Èleryn had her eyes covered...though she did peak a look between a few fingers.

Pulling away, they ducked their heads, hiding the heat on their faces. Awryen cleared her throat and turned to Èleryn.

“I _believe_ that was the opening act for the festival, little one. Come, let’s go see what games they have, hmm?”

An excited squeal left the little elf as she ran forward, grabbing one of her hands and then grabbing one of Varian’s, and she began to drag them further into the village. She chattered excitedly about what her favorite festival foods were ( _‘the pandaren may have something_ a little _different, love.’_ ) and she hopped there were fishing booths.

As they walked, Awryen turned her gaze upon the man she loved so fiercely. His usually stern face was soft, some of the lines that were retained when he was resurrected softer and less defined as he listened to the little girl chatter. The draenei felt a lump form in her throat. This man loved that little girl. She may not have been his by birth, and she knew the man had always wanted another child, but this little one had won him over completely. She could see it shining so strongly in his eyes.

There was no doubt about it; Èleryn was his daughter and he would protect her with every fiber of his being.

Though she had hopes of one day having a child with him, Awryen found this was fine. The tumultuous lives they had danced through had brought them here together, with her.

Their family was perfect and she wanted nothing more. Well...save for Anduin to be here, but that would come in time.

“You _alright_ , love?”

Awryen tuned back in, her gaze meeting Varian’s as he watched her in curiosity. Èleryn had already let go of their hands, flitting back and forth between booths, unable to decide what she wanted first.

Smiling at him she said, “I’m fine, Vare. I feel _perfectly_ fine...and _happy._ ”


	18. Day 18 - Jealous One (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jealousy comes in many forms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I stretched the meaning of this one. It also went in a COMPLETELY different direction than I had originally planned _(it was supposed to be smutty)_ , yet, here we are!! It also truned into a father/son bonding moment. 
> 
> I wasn't sure if I was gonna get this posted before work. The whole day was just tiring and blah. Expcet typos. I'll make another pass over it tomorrow when I'm not pressed for time.
> 
> edit: Did some better proofreading and it flows better now.

Awryen had been training in the training field of the garrison for around fourty-five minutes before Anduin found her. The young prince had decided to come down and work on his own skills. He knew they had both let their skills diminish after their unfortunate incident in Pandaria; both to recovering from their injuries and to their respective duties.

For herself, however, she had let them go for a preference in weapon usage; her prized crossbow.

Over the course of fifteen minutes after he had completed his warmups, she kept an eye on him and mentally catalogued his strengths and weaknesses. She was impressed at how few weakness he had.

During one of her observations, she had caught his eye. He smiled at her in return before letting the smile morph into a grin that reminded her very strongly of his father. Not missing a beat, she threw a grin of her own his way and they both notched another arrow. Once the arrows flew, a contest of sorts started between them, which added a thrill to their rather mundane training.

Their first round was simply them walking down the line, and aiming for the center of the targets. Both hit the red centers, mere centimeters apart from each other. Over the course of the next few rounds, they would go faster, jogging, then running, shifting positions as though they were in the midst of battle.

By their fourth round, in which Awryen vaulted over an imagined fallen tree, a crowd had formed. Bets were being placed and it amused her immensely. Younger recruits were more likely to bet on Anduin while the older, seasoned soldiers placed bets on her. She supposed it made a certain amount of sense seeing as many of them had seen her in action before.

As the fifth round came about, the targets were replaced with a fresh set. With help from some of the garrison mages, they were levitated into the air and began to move; some moved slowly, some were fast, some jerked around oddly, and others simply spun around the training field. The goal for this last round was to obviously hit as many as possible.

Anduin went first. He being prince necessitated this courtesy. He had forgone his overcoat and outer tunic, opting to stay in his undershirt in the humid heat. Awryen had to stifle the urge to roll her eyes when she heard the giddy sighs of the younger women and men, who were not so sublte in their ogling of the younger man.

Focusing back in, the draenei watched as he steadied himself and waited for the signal to start. Once it sounded, the prince was off. Over the next minute and half, Anduin was a surprising blur, firing off shot after shot, dodging targets that got too close or jumping over displaced rocks and other various debris.

Needless to say, Awryen was _impressed_.

“Who said you needed _extra_ training, your Highness?,” she asked, incredulously. “You are _plenty_ well trained!”

Anduin smiled at her in thanks as he returned to the starting point, taking the proffered towel from her and wiping his face free of sweat before slinging it about his shoulders.

“ _I did_. I don’t train as much as I should, especially in the wake of that incident in Pandaria.”

She nodded in agreement, a frown adorning her face. Her own recovery involved re-strengthening her broken hip and leg. She had no doubts his had been more extensive...

Snorting softly, she huffed, “ _Hardly_.”

Then she grinned a grin so full of trouble the young prince had to lean away from her.

“...what is _that_ look for?”

“Nothing. Just get ready for a _show!_ ”

* * *

Awryen took her place at the starting point, eyes already scanning the area and cataloguing where the targets were, finding the smallest of patterns in even the most erratic of movements. Her mind was already calculating the angles in which to fire from that she missed the newcomer who had joined the crowd.

Gleaming silver-blue armor caught Anduin’s eye and he quickly joined his father, but not before taking an offered canteen along the way.

“Your archery skills are _still_ on point. _Good work_ , son.”

The young prince beamed at his father, taking pride in his skills and his father’s praise.

“Thank you,“ he said, taking a swig from the canteen. Then he answered with a rueful shrug, “Let’s be honest, however... _Awryen_ is the better archer.”

Cocking his head slightly, Varian watched the woman before them take her place, bow and quiver at the ready. Smirking slightly, he nodded.

“Take _no_ offense, Anduin, but you’re _right_. _She’s incredible_.”

Anduin could only chuckle, “None taken.” A cat like grin emerged on the prince’s face as he said, “However, you’re _biased_. Hardly a _fair_ observation.”

A snort was his answer, his father turning his face away slightly to try and hide the pink rising in his face.

“Just _watch_.”

The signal sounded. Both father and son waited eagerly as the very air seemed to change around the ranger. Nary a second after the signal sounded, she was gone.

Arrows flew, one, two, sometimes even three at a time. Hooves seem to glide across the ground, her movements steady and sure. Around them, the crowd had gone silent as they all held their breath in anticipation. Anduin’s mouth had dropped open when Awryen ducked under a low flying target, sliding across the grassy field, and letting loose two arrows at an odd angle. Both of them hit their marks, one of them splitting his own arrow down the middle.

The last target was tricky, jerking around in a fast, unpredictable pattern. Awryen barely seemed to see it before she readied another arrow and let it fly. The center was pierced just before the target moved swiftly out of its original path.

Standing up, huffing out a tired sigh, Awryen surveyed her work, her bow held down in front of her, another arrow sitting ready in her fingers. Satisfaction bled across her face.

The crowd around her was silent for a few moments more before they erupted into cheers and groans. Anduin spied a lot of gold and silver being swapped around and he laughed. Beside him, his father did the same.

“Good thing you _couldn’t_ place bets, son,” he said, a wolfish smile gleaming at him.

“Maybe _next_ time, huh?”

The crowd began to disperse. Awryen pulled her bow back into place and notched another arrow. It flew and landed its mark. Anduin could only admire her, her skill and control absolute. He could learn a lot from her, he knew.

“...anyway _why_ is archery so fucking _sexy?_ ”

Anduin frowned as a group of young men around his own age stopped nearby, watching Awryen as she fired off a few more arrows. Their gazes were hungry and he could hear snickers as they continued to make off color and lewd comments about her. He had no interest in her himself, but he knew objectively, that she was a very attractive woman. However, this was wrong and he turned to give them a stern talking to.

Another voice beat him to it.

“ _Shoulders_ and absolute _physical_ control. _Next question_.”

The group froze then turned as one. An audible gulp could be heard as they saw the thunderous expression upon his father’s face, eyes hard and turning green. He snorted at them before baring his teeth.

“Nothing _else_ to say? Nothing else to _ask?_ ” he growled. “Then get back to your _barracks!!_ ”

“ _Yes_ , your Majesty!!”

Every one of the young men scrambled to do as their king had ordered them, tripping over themselves in their haste to flee from him.

Anduin chuckled as he watched them flee, “I think they may have, uh, _well._ A change of _pants_ may be in order.” His eyes were creased into a mischievous squint, grin sliding across his face. His father could only scowl.

“ _Serves_ them right. Awryen is more than just some candy to drooled over. I expect my troops, _our people_ , to hold more respect. For her and for their female compatriots.”

Anduin raised a brow.

“Father...do _not_ pretend you haven’t said similar things in the past.”

Pink once again rose into his cheeks, and the king shifted on his feet, hand rubbing at the back of his neck.

“ _Years_ ago, Anduin. I’ve done my level best to never reduce a woman to the sum of her body parts and looks. I only want our people to do the same.”

“Fair enough,” Anduin said before he gave his father that same cat-like grin. “ _You know_...if you wish to keep this relationship _'secret,'_ you _might_ want to curb these jealous tendencies.”

Varian groaned, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“ _I know_ , I just...,” he sighed and rubbed at his eyes. “I want _so much_ to be with her out in the open. I was used to that with your mother. And Katrana...well...”

Here his father paused, troubled over the one truly _bad_ relationship is his life, if one could even _call_ it that.

“With Katrana, the castle _knew_...whether we were upfront about it or not. She had _planned_ it that way. Awryen is different. We’ve tried so hard to keep it close, but I’m pretty sure the staff knows...” he grumbled, pink flushing his face once more.

Anduin felt for his father, truly. The poor man had been out of the courting game for too long, with one set of bad experiences being his latest lesson to go by. And at his age, he truly gave no damn to courting propriety, which made this whole situation so frustrating.

Regarding his father’s want to court Awryen properly in the open, well…quite frankly, the prince agreed with his father. His father had suffered enough these last eighteen years, he deserved happiness. The nobles and anyone else’s thoughts on the matter be damned.

“Father...I really _do_ think you should just announce it.”

Varian was already shaking his head.

“ _I can’t_ , Anduin. There are still two noble houses with enough clout over the rest of them that if I announce my intentions to court a woman who is not of noble blood, or better yet, not _human_ , they could revolt.”

Anduin was frowning in response, “You’d be _surprised_ , father, at the support you _have_. Besides, I thought you told her you _didn’t_ care what they thought?”

His father looked troubled again, then sighed.

“You are correct. I _don't_ , not entirely. However, after I stripped that baroness of her title, Shaw uncovered a plot from two of the minor houses to overthrow our family. There were plans to _‘kill the blue-blooded bitch who dared to bewitch the king.’_ ”

His growl was deep on the end, teeth bared and eyes slowly changing color once more.

“The majority of the nobles have no clue. Shaw and Valeera made _sure_ of that. The minor houses have already been _dealt with_ ,” he said, eyes losing their glare. Sighing wearily, he continued, “I will not endanger her anymore than she already is by virtue of being one of our best champions. Our relationship _stays_ between us and those in the know.”

Anduin was still frowning as his father relayed everything to him. He had no idea things had gotten so bad. No doubts these plans had arisen after the last Hallow’s End masquerade, where his father had done as he said. The former baroness he mentioned had been extrememly rude and insulted Awryen, prompting his father's wrath. What bothered him the most, however, was the fact that he was only just now being made aware of these events. Not even _Valeera_ had seen fit to inform him.

“Why didn’t you _tell_ me?” he asked, his displeasure made known.

“Anduin, you have enough on your plate. Your advanced studies as a priest and your projects with the people are too important to be burdened with worries that you would have _not_ been able to do anything about.”

“True...but as her _friend_ , I would like to have been informed before _now._ This isn’t like _Bolvar_ , father. I'm not a child anymore,” the young prince said, his emphasis on their old friend pronounced. 

Varian gazed over his son, studying the stern set of his features. There was no doubt he took after him in looks. For years he had the softer countenance that belied his mother, but as he grew older, he took after him more and more. The quiet strength and wisdom, so pronounced for one so young, was all Tiffin. He found his resolve breaking. His son was grown, yes, and would eventually take his place. Anduin deserved to know more in the future.

Walking up to him, he laid a hand on his shoulder, gaze apologetic.

“I’m sorry, Anduin. I did what I thought was _best_ in these circumstances. But you _are_ right. Awryen is important to _both_ us, not strictly me. I’ll be sure to keep you apprised of anything else should they arise. For now, don’t worry about it. It has been handled.”

“Good. I appreciate it," he said, finishing off the canteen before he started once more. "Father, I know your instincts are strong in the realm of protecting everyone closest to you, but we aren’t fragile.”

“True. These particular events, however, happened so quickly, it had to be handled just a fast. There really wasn’t any time to inform anyone else.”

Anduin could only raise a brow at him, skeptical, but he let the matter drop. All that mattered was that his father would be more forthcoming from now on.

A soft growl erupted between them. The prince rubbed at his stomach, a faint flush spreading over his cheeks.

“Um... _lunch?_ ”

"I thought you would never ask!"

Both Wrynn's turned as one, Varian smiling softly at Awryen as she finally made her way over to them, her bow slung across her back, the quiver she used hanging at her side. She had a towel of her own resting about her shoulders as she slung her arms about their waists, giving them both a small hug before she stepped ahead of them, heading for the main building. A brow raised when she heard Anduin's stomach growl once more.

"Let's get a move on, you two. We don't need Anduin starving to death, now do we?"


	19. Day 19 - Tired

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian's worn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not...happy with this one. I just couldn't think of anything satisfactory for this prompt. But I did my best.
> 
> I do wanna poke at Varian's mindset and thoughts on his dying and being resurrected again in a future fic. This is just a smidge.

“How’re you feeling, your Majesty?”

“I’m fine Khadgar. Just a little tired. And _don’t_ call me that.”

The wizard raised his brows in surprise at the vehemence in the former king’s voice. Varian grimaced before he sighed and gave the other man a lopsided smile.

“ _Please_ …Anduin is now king. It’s no longer a title worthy of me.”

Khadgar frowned at the other man, shaking his head at him.

“I beg to _differ,_ Your- _Varian_. You will _always_ be a worthy king of the Alliance and Stormwind. _However_ , I will respect your request,” Khadgar said, raising a hand to signal his backing down.

“Thank you, archmage.”

The admission of gratitude was so heavy with a weariness that Khadgar smiled in sympathy. He knew that feeling very well. The Legion never left a soul completely untouched, no matter how strong the will or the spirit.

“I’ll leave you to rest. And let that young lady rest as well. She was the only one keeping you from _shattering_ apart. She spent her very 'soul' on you.” With that, the wizard left the room, waving his hand to light a few candles around them, to alleviate some of the gloom.

Varian gazed down at the sleeping draenei curled up at his side. After he had woken, she had adamantly refused to leave him, clinging to him in a bid to reaffirm that he was there. Solid and with her once more. However, they had barely had time to talk before her eyes drooped closed and she collapsed against him. Her body had been spent while using her healing abilities on him, as Khadgar had mentioned.

“... _Love..._ you didn’t have to endanger _yourself_ to save me...” he whispered, trailing his fingers over her cheek before ghosting them over her lips. “I’ve _lived_ my life...”

She stirred and blinked up at him sleepily, a slight frown forming at her brow.

“...Vare..." she croaked quietly, voice thick with sleep, "I will do whatever I see fit if it protects you. I lost you once...I _won’t_ again.”

She had grabbed his hand, twining their fingers together as she fought to control the sudden stinging in her eyes.

Varian wished he could refute her, but he knew it would be futile. His lover had always been steadfast and stubborn...and he would be lying if he said he did not appreciate her saving him. There was a small part of him that had wished she just ended his cursed existence, however, but after watching him die once before, he knew she would not do so again.

“I love you, Awryen. And I do thank you...but I can worry about you just as much you worry for me,” he said, laying his hand upon her cheek, her hand closed over it. “Now go back to sleep. You’re struggling to keep your eyes open as is.”

A few stubborn tears fell fell down her cheeks before she closed her eyes once more, relaxing next to him.

“I love you, too...”


	20. Day 20 - Sea Side (post Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peace leads to happiness which leads to an enthusiastic thank you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was an excuse to do three things: write fluff, write cute Varian, and to write smut.

During those early days in the Jade Forest, Awryen had come across the Arboretum. The whole of Jade Forest itself was beautiful, especially after the destruction around Azertoth in the wake of Deathwing’s attacks, but this place…it was damn near storybook. Magical.

After she and Varian had started seeing one another, she had every intention of bringing him here. The idyllic nature of the place would have been a balm on his wary soul. Not to mention the majesty surrounding the Wind Serpents. To this day, she still found them mesmerizing, gliding through the air with an ease she rarely saw even from the dragon flights.

Alas, life had gotten in the way. Varian had his duties in Stormwind, preparing for the eventuality of invading Orgrimmar, worrying over Anduin, and her own various exploits throughout the foreign continent.

Once Garrosh had been stopped, her visits to Pandaria became less and less and once the dark portal was opened again, she had to say goodbye to this beautiful place.

It damn near broke her heart, because here in the Arboretum, was a companion she had personally raised...and had to leave behind.

As Awryen and Varian flew into the cherry trees, an excited roar echoed through out the leaves. After landing and dismounting from their respective steeds, the two newcomers stepped away from their beast when a blur of black and purple raced towards them. Naesa and Greywing each gave a cry of alarm and quickly dashed away from the bulk of the black mass of scales that had decided to loosely coil around them.

“ _Hotaru!!_ ”

Awryen raised her hands as the massive head of the gorgeous, shimmering cloud serpent lowered to her, those golden eyes closing as a low rumble reverberated around them.

“I’ve _missed_ you. Have you been good, sweetheart?”

Another rumble was her answer.

“Rye?”

Awryen lifted her head from where she nuzzled against the beast's forehead to look at her lover. Varian’s eyes were wide as he slowly stepped up to the beast, lifting a hesitant hand out, palm up, in invitation.

“Go on, sweetheart. He won’t bite.”

Nuzzling her once more, Hotaru turned to him and sniffed at his fingers before she lowered her great head and allowed him to pet her. The former king ran his fingers and hand over the glittering scales, so smooth under his touch, before he sank them into the mane past her jaw. Another rumble sounded, curls of white smoke swirling around them as the serpent purred contentedly to Varian’s soft scritches.

Awryen watched, bemused, as her lover fell for Hotaru. Leave it to one of her many beast companions to render the former king so speechless.

“She’s a _sweetheart_. The entire time I was last here and training her, she was _never_ aggressive, which is unusual for a cloud serpent. “

A soft growl was answer enough as Varian continued his gentle sractching. Then he grasped her head and buried his face against hers.

“I love Greywing, you _know_ I do…” he said, voice muffled against her scales. Turning his head to her, Awryen nearly choked on a laugh. His eyes were comically big and shiny, a pout at his lips as he put on his best puppy eyes.

“But you’ve been _sitting_ on these! I would have _killed_ to train one of them.”

Awryen was a little surprised. The serpents, though not true dragons, were still rather similar. Varian’s fascination with them was interesting to say the least.

“Apparently. I didn’t think you would be quite so interested in them.”

“They aren’t _dragons_. And there were a few Pandaren in the fleet who had these magnificent beasts and I… _well_. “

She could understand his speechlessness. The first time she saw one of these creatures, she had been just as gob smacked. They had a certain magical beauty about them that even the drakes did not possess.

“I’ll have to remember this for next time, then. They are rather long lived creatures."

Varian cooed at the great serpent before he turned back to her.

“Can we take her on a flight?”

The giddiness in his voice warmed her heart, but also thrummed through her blood. His excitement made him look younger, eyes shining brightly, both literally and figuratively. She knew she would not be able to say no for very long. But she still had plans for him.

“We will later, love. I still have to show you the rest of the Arboretum. There are many of the serpents here, seeing as the _Order of the Cloud Serpent_ resides here. They raise and train them, you see.”

Awryen smiled slyly before she stage whispered, “There’s a _nesting ground_ we can visit...if you want.”

Looking torn, Varian turned to the great beast and sighed dramatically. Patting her snout softly, he said sadly, “Well, looks like we’ll have to cut this affair short, beautiful.”

Her eyes nearly rolled right of her head as he threw her cheeky grin. Clucking her tongue, Hotaru reacted, uncurling from around them and lifting easily into the air with a soft huff before she circled around them, smoke streaming from her nose. Varian could only watch in fascination.

“ _Shit…_ ”

“Legend says that the first cloud serpent was born of lightning, water, and fire. She was brought forth by a massive storm that descended over the Vale by the Thunder King.”

"I can believe it. Such magnificent creatures could only be the work of otherwolrdly magic.”

Awryen beckoned for Varian to follow and they resumed their travel into the forest, their wayward mounts cautiously approaching them before they mounted up and flew further on. Hotaru followed after, swooping high, then low over the trees.

* * *

Awryen could see how much Varian was enjoying the Arboretum. He was talking rather animatedly with one of the serpent riders while she brushed Hotaru’s mane.

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen him so _alive_ , girl. I should have brought him here ages ago...it would have done him some _good_ , I think,” she said quietly, gently brushing over her scales, making them glitter all the more. The great beast rumbled at her, nosing at her cheek before laying her head down, eyes closed in content.

It was not long before Varian wandered over and he wrapped his arms about her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder.

“You mentioned a nesting ground...?”

There was something in his voice that stirred her blood and she glanced at him. His eyes were shining, but they were also a bit dark, which surprised her. Neither of them had been flirting heavily the whole time they were here, and yet...

Smiling at him, Awryen turned back to her companion, brushing at her mane one final time.

“I’ll be back in a while, sweetheart. This one wants to explore for a while. We’ll go flying later, hmm?”

Pulling away from the serpent, she patted at Varian’s arms to signal that he let her go. He held on for a moment more, nuzzling her neck before leaving a kiss at the juncture of her shoulder before he let her go. Giving him a curious look, he winked at her.

“Come on, I really wanna see these nesting grounds.”

“…are you _sure_ that’s what you want? Or are you just trying to get me alone…?”

Seeding an enigmatic grin her way, Varian just turned and made his way over to their mounts. Naesa was playing with a baby serpent, batting at them before darting to the side and crouching low, her feathered tail wagging.

“Let Naesa stay. We’ll take Greywing, if that’s ok with you?”

Still eyeing him, not wholly convinced that he did not have ulterior motives, the draenei acquiesced and told her steed to behave, which earned her a _‘whuff’_ in response before the beast was off again, the little serpent quickly following after with a screech of excitement.

Varian was already seated upon the gryphon and he held a hand out to her. Taking it, Awryen stepped up and settled herself in front of him. His arms came around her, sliding his hands over her hips before he took the reins and lightly tapped his heels into his beast’s sides. Greywing screeched softly then ran before leaping into the air, grabbing at the wind currents and swooping through the air.

“Where to?”

“To the northeast. They’re very hard to miss, love.”

“Good...means we can fly elsewhere a bit.”

Narrowing her eyes, Awryen turned a bit to look over her shoulder at him. His eyes were alight with excitement and anticipation.

“ _I knew it_. What’s gotten into you?”

Tucking his chin on her shoulder once more, he gave her a playful smile.

“I want to see the nests, Rye. I really do. But right now, I _really_ want to thank you for bringing me he... _properly_.”

A shiver of anticipation went down her spine as he nibbled at her neck before he steered Greywing north, towards Sri La Village. Awryen kept an eye out for dangers. Years before, a group of Hozen had tried to take over the village by way of a set of tunnels nearby, but she had cleared them out and gotten rid of the Sha corruption. So far, there were no signs of the wayward creatures.

She spotted a small plot of land that the sea lapped against and pointed it out to him. Varian flew them there and they landed. He gently took Greywing’s face and softly spoke to the beast before he bade the animal to take flight. Soon, it was only the two of them.

Excitement and nervousness began to war within her as she watched Varian slowly strip from his armor.

“Don’t get shy _now_ , love.”

Scrunching her nose at him and sticking out her tongue, the draenei began to strip herself. Soon, the both of them were nude and he took a running leap into the sea. Completely exasperated at the antics of her lover, the ranger soon followed him in. Once she hit the water, she felt a pair of hands grab her ankles and she was pulled under the water, a yelp leaving her lips before the water closed over her.

Kicking at him, she broke the surface and spluttered.

“ _Varian!!_ ”

His delighted laugh surrounded her and she could not help but laugh herself before she swam at him and tackled him. They both fell into the water, their faces close, as his arms wrapped about her waist and brought her flush against his body. Despite the slight chill to the water, she could feel his length hardening against her stomach.

Kicking hard and keeping her pressed against him, Varian brought them back to the surface, water streaming down their flushed faces.

“Love... _thank you_ so much for bringing here. Not just the Arboretum, but Pandaria herself. The tranquility here...it’s been soothing. I’ve been at a level of peace I haven’t felt in years and that is _all_ thanks to _you_.”

If it were not for the water still dripping down her face, Awryen’s tears would be more visible, but she could not help but press her forehead to his, her eyes closed as the tears streamed down her cheeks.

“There’s no need to thank me, my love. You needed this and I would never leave you to languish. You know that right?”

“ _Yes. I do._ ”

Leaning forward, he kissed her, soft and gentle before he pressed into the kiss harder. Shifting his arms, he brought his hands to her hips and gripped her firmly. Her arms came up to wrap about his neck a she deepened the kiss, her tongue sweeping into his mouth. Her tail, mischievous thing that it was, wrapped about his waist, keeping her anchored.

Eventually they had to pull back for air, but also because the constant kicking to keep them afloat was a hindrance and Varian let her go reluctantly. They swam back to shore, but not before he spied an outcrop that was just high enough to suit their needs. Smiling a wolfish grin, Varian pulled her over to the outcrop and pressed her into it.

They kissed again, one of his hands skimming down her breasts, flicking at a nipple before he trailed it down her stomach and then slipped between her folds. She gasped into his mouth and pulled back, her head tipping back slightly as his fingers hooked into her and dragged his nails against the sensitive flesh. The heel of his hand was pressed against her clit, rubbing slightly to give her the friction she needed to buck against them.

“Oh _Vare…_ ”

Varian trailed his lips across her throat, leaving hot, opened mouthed kisses here and there before he latched onto her pulse point and sucked, his fingers pumping in tandem to his sucking. Her hips began to buck harder against his hand and her breaths began to come out in gasps. Before she could press further into reaching that edge, he pulled his hand away.

Her annoyed groan was swiftly followed by a deep moan as he took her legs and wrapped them about his waist before shifting to sink his length deep within her in one swift stroke. Resting his hands on the outcrop, he bent his waist to cup his thighs under her and began to buck.

Water churned around them, adding ticklish sensations to their movements. Awryen had her back arched, the rock underneath her digging into her skin, but she hardly paid it any mind. Her head was tipped further back which allowed her chest to jut out a bit more. Varian had his mouth latched onto a breast, her nipple being swirled in his mouth by his ever insistent tongue.

Her gasps were getting harsher as his thrusts increased, splashing water around them. Fire flowed thorugh her veins and lower belly.

Awryen vaguely hoped no one would find them, because she knew she was hard pressed to keep herself quiet. Soon that worry left her head as Varian pressed her harder into the outcrop and slammed up into her. He grasped one of her thighs and lifted it, bending it forward towards her to hook her knee over his shoulder, changing the penetration angle slightly and causing him to press deeper.

“Mmmm... _fuuuuck!!_ ”

He growled in response before he did the same to her other leg. Soon, the only one still truly within the water was Varian, and he used his considerable strength to keep the pace going since the only leverage he had were his hands on the outcrop.

Awryen settled more against him, letting her back relax and met his thrusts, mouth open, panting.

“ _Hah!!_ ”

She felt the fire rage into an inferno in her belly and Awryen threw her head back, one hand gripping his shoulder as the other found purchase on the rock underneath her. Vision going white, she keened, her thighs shaking as she fell into her orgasm. Varian tumbled after her almost instantly, his groan mixing with her own sounds of satisfaction.

The warmth pooled in her belly as he slowed his thrusting, her body still milking him. His forehead was pressed into her sternum, hot breath fanning over her skin as he sagged in the water a bit before he pulled out of her. Varian brought her legs back down and she slid into the water once more. Before she could do anything else, however, she cried out as he slid his fingers into her. Smirking, he stroked her lightly.

“ _Clean up_ , love. You know I never leave you _too_ dirty.”

Rolling her eyes before they fluttered closed, Awryen snorted at him but was soon moaning softly before he pulled his fingers away. She pouted slightly, but was secretly pleased as she was still overly sensitive.

Caging her again, Varian kissed her softly before he murmured a soft “Thank you.” Smiling at her, he pulled away, languidly swimming away on his back. Awryen followed after him.

Back on shore, Varian called for Greywing using a sharp, shrill whistle that pierced the air. A matching screech could be heard further away and within minutes the animal was standing before them. He rifled through their bags and found a couple towels, handing her one.

Drying themselves of the sea water, they soon dressed and were back aboard the gryphon, heading back to the Arboretum, skewing southwest towards Windward Isle.

“ _Now_...how about those nesting grounds, love?”

Awryen smiled, all the while wondering if she would recieve another enthusiastic thank you later.


	21. Day 21 - Sweet (post Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Domestic fluff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a part of my headcanon regarding Varian and hunger. Plus, it let me take the piss out of him a bit. :V
> 
> Edit 12/16/2020: Decided to move their bedroom upstairs. Inspired by [this.](https://awryensketchbook.tumblr.com/image/612359198281515008)

“Varian!”

Awryen called out to him from the small kitchen of their cozy two story cabin. She and Èleryn were busy gathering up the ingredients to make some of her specialized frosted brownies. The spices she used made them slightly spicy, which made the chocolate richer. Èleryn had tried one a few weeks back and had been begging her to make more.

“Come in here and help us make brownies, love!"

From the other side of the small cabin, a slightly muffled voice answered her.

“ _I’ll be there in a few, Rye!_ ”

Frowning, the draenei narrowed her eyes. Why would his voice be so muffled...? The cabin was _not_ that big. Suspicious, she turned to their charge.

“Make sure you get us two eggs laid out, ok hon? I’ll be back in a few moments.”

Leaning down to kiss the girl atop her head, Awryen left the kitchen.

Pressing open the door, she scanned the front room before she entered and walked across the floor to stairs. Eyes still narrowed, her instincts telling her that he was up to something, she her way up the stairs and into the slightly enclosed space that made up their bedroom.

“ ** _Varian Wrynn!_** ”

He froze and turned to her, a bag of mana buns clutched to his chest and one still in his mouth. His eyes were huge, a flush spreding across his cheeks as he was caught, completely red handed.

“Light!! You _know_ I can’t conjure these often! My arcane skills are not strong enough nor developed enough to handle these!”

Pulling the bun in his mouth away, he quickly swallowed the bite he had in his mouth and looked at her sheepishly.

“Uh...I was... _hungry_. You know these are one of the few foods that will actually evoke that response...”

“Yes and that is _why_ they’re so important for when you actually _need_ them. Light, Vare…”

“Papa?”

Èleryn pushed passed Awryen and quickly saw the bag of mana buns, her eyes widening, shining in the light.

“ _Oooh!!_ Can I have one too?!”

Groaning in frustration, Awryen just slapped her hand across her eyes.

“Fine. _Just one_ , dear. And _you!!_ ”

Pointing at the former king with a stern expression, she said, “Finish the one you have and _put that bag back in its place_. We can’t have them dissipating. Otherwise, Nakara’s time spell would be for naught. My magic hasn’t fully replenished from the _last time_ you devoured the whole bag.”

Chuckling in apology, Varian handed one of the buns to the little half-elf before he placed the bag back into its designated spot. A spot he fervently wished were elsewhere...

“Why do we have them in here, as opposed to the _kitchen_ , love? _Explain_ that.”

“Because this way I can make sure the little one doesn’t get into them. Now if I could only just keep _you_ out of them we’d be _golden_.”

Munching on the bun he had, Varian stepped up to his annoyed lover and bent down, leaving a sticky, crumb encrusted kiss upon her cheek. He threw her a cheeky grin and beckoned the little girl from the room, her skipping after him as they left for the kitchen.

Awryen softly laughed and rolled her eyes once more before she began to follow after them.

A soft splat could be heard from the kitchen and she picked up her speed.

" _Mama!!_ Papa dropped a few _eggs!!_ "

" _Èl!!_ "

* * *

Bonus art!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, if it's not very clear, Varian in his current existance can eat food, but it's more...habit or just because he likes certain flavors and textures. He doesn't actually have to eat. Or sleep for that matter. However, being that his body is powered by arcane and light magics, he sometimes gets a little...hungry. Especially after he's been going for a while. So, conjured mana food will actually satisfy that seldom feeling of hunger. Plus, he LOVES them. Neither he nor Awryen truly know why, but they both suspect the arcane magic is what's making them so tasty for him. To her, they just taste kind of generic.


	22. Day 22 - Sacrifice (post LEgion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One sacrifice too many.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short one today.

The dust had cleared and Varian blinked his burning eyes before he scanned the still raging battle around him. It seemed his area was the only spot clear for the moment.

“Rye?”

His voice came out sounding oddly muffled as he looked around for her, but he began to frown when he could not see her in the midst of fighting. Until his eyes spied blue on the ground a good few feet away. He turned his head and he could feel his throat constrict.

“Awryen?”

There was no movement and Varian could feel where his heart would have been starting to ache. Her hair was a mess from what he could see, matted and tangled. Standing up shakily, Varian took a step in her direction and nearly buckled under his own weight. Looking down, he saw that his leg was cracking, the armor around it frayed and charred.

What the fuck had hit...?

Memories assaulted him in that moment. Awryen was fighting...something. He could have sworn it was a tauren, but the creature had been all wrong. As he struggled to stay on his feet and make his way over to her still unmoving body, he scanned the area once more.

He remembered.

The Void. Its minions had come to attack them in droves. Those who were weak minded were easily taken over and changed. They took control of the Alliance’s and the Horde’s various mechanical contraptions and were using them in the area. With great effectiveness.

Awryen...she...

Stumbling as he quickly made his over to her, he finally fell to his knees at her side, a deep ache already permeating his body. His vision was going dark at the edges when he laid a hand up on her arm...and found it _cold_.

“No… _Love_ …!”

Varian was trembling, barely holding on to his mind as he could feel it beginning to crack. Tears were pooling at the edges of his eyes as he gripped her arm and turned her over to face him.

Everything shattered.

Her eyes, once such a soft, glowing blue, were completely void of light. Sightless. Thick blue blood had polled and spilled over her lips onto the ground and matted the dirt against her face. He barely noticed the two bodies nearby, brown and white fur matted with sticky red blood, huddled as close as they could get in death.

_Her_ _body_...

He choked on a sob as he gathered her broken, shredded body to his chest and buried his face into her breast. Whatever had hit her had torn into her stomach and she had stood no chance.

Before he lost his mind completely, one more memory hit him.

Awryen. Yelling at him to move out of the way. She tackled him before she got back up and turned to face whatever had been aimed at him.

**_BOOM_ **

The explosion knocked him back further and he felt the cracking of his leg, but not before he remembered her worried, terrified, and _loving eyes_ lock on to his before she faced what would soon be her destiny.

His roar of anguish echoed all across the battlefield before he sank to ground with her, cuddling her body close and let his mind finally splinter and go black.

* * *

It would be some time yet before his soul would find out what happened to his son.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure if I want this to be their canon ending or not. We don't exactly know how this game world will end, so...and I felt like angst, I really like angst, :V
> 
> Varian wasn't kidding. If he were to lose her, Anduin, or both of them, he would have shattered. He'd lost too much in his life and it would break him each time. You can only fix a broken vase so many times before it's so fragile it won't stay together anymore.


	23. Day 23 - "You're kidding" (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shenanigans in the library.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright!! Be ye warned. This one is just pure smut. 
> 
> PURE. SMUT. 
> 
> There's the teeniest set up for it, but it doesn't really advance much.
> 
> It does, however, make Varian's comments in day 18's ficlet make a bit more sense. |D

Varian had to applaud his lover. Awryen was valiantly keeping quiet, only making the softest grunts and whimpers as he bucked up into her.

The little room in the library had been empty save for the old tomes that were in need of replacement or repair. The little minx had found him looking for books on what they knew of the old gods and the Legion, hoping to find something useful to pass the time. His instincts had been screaming for days and he wanted to scratch that knowledge itch.

Apparently, his mischievous lover had an itch to scratch herself (“ _ **You’re kidding.** Here. In the _library.”). They soon found themselves acting like a couple of randy teenagers. To keep their chances of getting caught low, Varian had pushed them into the little room. He had to admit, however, the possibility of getting caught sent a thrill of fire burning through his blood...

Awryen keened softly as he adjusted his grip on her hips and ass. He knew she would probably have faint bruises along the skin and he felt the self satisfaction _thrum_ in his blood. They would be one of only a few marks he would ever leave upon her skin, so long as she allowed it.

Varian buried his face into her shoulder as he perched on the table, her legs splayed open on either side of his hips. His feet were ground into the floor, giving him the leverage he needed to thrust into her, deep, and slow. He wanted very much to keep their fucking as slow as possible, to enjoy this rather precarious moment a little longer…

**_Click_ **

Golden eyes snapped open and glared at the now slightly open door. Varian pulled his face up from her skin to bare his teeth in a snarl, all the while refusing to stop his thrusts.

“ _Aaahhnn!!_ ”

Awryen moaned a little louder than she had been as he sped up his bucking, pushing her hips into his harder, grinding his pelvis against hers to create that delicious zing through her clit. Her head was tilted back slightly, eyes shut and mouth open, panting at every thrust.

Eyes still trained on the intruder, Varian let his snarl bleed into a wolfish grin, teeth still on display before he allowed his tongue to glide over the skin of her shoulder, a low rumbling growl permeating the room.

With on final smirk thrown at the door, Varian imbedded his teeth into her shoulder, hard enough to break the skin with his sharpened incisors. Blood filled his mouth. In any other circumstance, he might have been apologetic and even a little disgusted, but the thrill had changed things. The metallic taste was heady and intoxicating.

Awryen arched against him as soon as his teeth broke skin, rolling her hips into his as she clenched hard around his cock.

Her scream was sure to have been heard by the keep, but in that moment, he cared little.

“ _FUUUUCK!!_ _VARIAN!!_ ”

She was completely wild, meeting his sped up thrusts, riding out her orgasm. Gripping her hips in that vice like grip, he slammed up into her, the slick sound of flesh completely obscene in that little room. Twice more he bucked before he muffled a roar into her shoulder, teeth still latched on as he filled her. Once spent, he thrust a few more times, causing her to grind against him in response, shocked whimpers spilling from her lips.

He knew there was a mess, he could feel it, but he paid it no mind. No, his eyes were still glued to the intruder as he finally let go of the poor abused shoulder underneath him to throw another feral smirk their way. He continued to slowly fuck her, causing more and more of their cum to spill out around his cock.

**_CLICK_ **

Awryen twitched slightly as she blinked her unfocused gaze at him. She had finally come back to herself when she heard the click, cocking her head at him as Varian licked at his lips, cleaning the blood away as best as he could.

“…what was that? That wasn’t the _door_ was it..?”

Giving her a satisfied smile, he kissed her lightly on the lips before he answered her.

“ _No._ A couple of pens hit the floor. We got a little… _wild,_ if you didn’t notice.” She didn't blink at his little white lie.

Awryen winced a bit, her shoulder hurting from where he had bitten her, but the flush on her face belied the discomfort.

“We _did_. Where did _that_ come from?” she asked, interest sparking in her eyes. Varian just raised a brow in return, shrugging.

“Just felt a little… _possessive_. Why?” Another feral smirk, which sent her breath hitching as he slowly bucked into her again. “You up for _another_ round…?”

“Mmmm! If-If we go back to your rooms, _yes_ ,“ she breathed, kissing him fully before she slid off his still semi hard length, wobbling slightly and grimacing at the mess.

“But _first_ …we need to get this cleaned up. This is one mess I _don’t_ want the servants to find.”

* * *

**Bonus Smut!!**

" _Hahh!_ "  
  
Golden eyes...so possessive and full of anger were seared into his brain...  
  
" _Nnnggh!_ "  
  
Her sounds of ecstasy were ringing in his ears...  
  
" _Hmm!!_ "  
  
Sounds of slick flesh slapping and the visual of their cum gathering and dripping down his cock as the king continued his relentless bucking into his insensate lover...  
  
"Fuck... _FUCK!!_ "  
  
Thick cum spurted from the tip of his dick as his hand flew up and down the shaft, fast and now erratic as his hips jerked into his strokes.  
  
Soft splats echoed in the quiet, dark alcove as his cum landed across his chest...his still _clothed_ chest, _dammit_.  
  
" _Aaahhhhnnnn_... _fuck_..."  
  
His stroking slowed down, hips still bucking a few times with how sensitive his dick had become. Finally, he pulled his trembling, sticky hand away, staring at the mess in what little light penetrated the darkness around him. Taking deep breaths to calm his swiftly pounding heart, he reflected over how he had even come to find Varian and his lover in _that way_.  
  
News had reached him of foul plots from the nobles and he wished to inform the king immediately. He had known the the king to be in the library, at least at one point.  
  
Never did he expect to find him so sinfully entwined with their best ranger inside one of the small repair rooms...  
  
Never did he expect to be _so turned on_ by the full display of male dominance he had witnessed nor the female rapture he had heard...  
  
Once they had cum, he had closed the door and ran. Ran until he found someplace quiet and hidden away so that he could take care of himself.  
  
Coming back to himself, Shaw huffed in annoyance. His clothing was messy and he had nothing on hand _(ha)_ to clean himself with.  
  
"Well...I'm not a _master rogue_ for nothing..." he mumbled, ruefully.

Soon, the alcove was as silent as it had been only minutes before. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I completely blame this idea on [BubbleDwarf](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BubbleDwarf). She wrote a fic that made me go all " _Oh?_ " and realize I have a kink I never really explore. Thus, this was born. _*blush*_


	24. Day 24 - Frozen (post Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kul Tiras brings in one of many surprises.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an older ficlet I wrote quite sometime ago, back wehn BfA first started. So it's a bit rougher than my other stuff, but I still like it enough. There may yet still be some ficlets set in Kul Tiras in teh future, just not for this challenge. Maybe.
> 
> Basically, after the Legion is defeated, this would be Varian's first real foray into being an adventurer in YEARS and I wanted to do more with that. *shrug*

"This must be Helena Gentle’s home...if she isn't at all affected by this curse...we may have our culprit," Awryen said, hopping off Naesa. Wrynn hopped down off the big wolfhawk, huffing lightly before lowering his nose to the ground. The drraenei patted the loyal beast, who had been with her ever since she tamed it in the mystical realm of the Fields of the Eternal Hunt.

Varian stood next to her, his brows drawn into a suspicious scowl. They had already fought off strange animals in the village and destroyed many of the odd little effigies they could find, hoping to break the spell's hold over the town. But it was to no avail.

Blue eyes and the scar across his face glowing faintly under his hood, Varian patted his own mount, Greywing. Canting his head to the side, he bade their mounts to stay away from the house. Being as loyal as they were, if trouble should arise, they would attack without prompting.

Steeling themselves, and after Varian placed his hand at Awryen's lower back, they made their way up the steps to the house. Wrynn was at their side, a very low grumble emanating from the back of his throat. He could feel how off this whole wood was.

Inside, they found rather young looking woman with gray hair puttering about. They glanced at each other as they noticed more of those strange effigies hanging around her front room. Awryen knocked lightly at the door. The woman stopped what she was doing and paused for a few moments. Then she straightened up and opened the door.

" _Hullo!!_ How may I help you two?" Helena asked, her voice seemingly pleasant, barely belying her age.

"We've been searching the town. And we're trying to figure out why there seems to be a _curse_ upon it. All of the villagers are in a stasis of some sort. You wouldn't happen to have any _ideas_ on this, would you?" Awryen asked, her voice full of concern, but also a little bit of warning. Varian glared at the woman over her shoulder. Wrynn, standing at attention, was growling at her, his bright blue eyes boring into her. Awryen could have sworn she saw a flicker shimmer around the woman, but it was so brief she could not be sure.

Helena gasped in shock, though to the two of them, it seemed a little...put upon.

"A _curse_ on the villagers? _Oh my!_ " she said, her hand hovering over her heart. "How _dreadful!_ "

Gesturing them to follow her inside she said, "Although, to be honest, there have been some strange _happenings_ around Fallhaven of late."

Bringing them to a table, she bade them to sit.

"I wonder if _these_ are the culprit. Take a _seat_ and have a spot of tea. I'll tell you _all_ that I know."

Awryen and Varian glanced at each other. The old woman seemed to have changed her tune rather quickly. They both knew they could not trust her nor her tea and were sure she had something to do with the town. But the effigies were not necessarily proof and she had yet to show any aggression.

However, Awryen decided to sit down and the woman poured her a quick cup. She waited for Varian to do the same, but he stubbornly stayed standing, his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes staying trained on the seemingly youthful woman.

As soon as Awryen reached for the cup, however, a strange feeling over came her and she was chained to the stool. Varian reacted quickly, grabbing one his monstrous blades, but he too was suddenly trapped in the purpleish black majick. Wrynn was also caught up in the spell, having been caught in mid leap.

Before their very eyes, the young woman transformed into a hideous old crone, cackling with mad glee.

" _Insipid warriors!!_ This village is _mine_ , the Mother has _willed_ it!!"

Waving her hands in dark magic to keep them in place long enough to make her escape, the old hag cried out as she ran quickly out of the mouse, "You should turn away now, lest you share their _fate!!_ "

* * *

Neither Varian nor Awryen knew how long they had sat there, trapped. Wrynn was growling loudly, struggling to get out of the spell's hold. They only knew that it was long enough for the old bat to have gotten away. Soon the trap faded and they were able to move again. Wrynn circled the room, sniffing out any other traps before he made his way out of the cottage. Outside, they heard the frantic screeches of their mounts. Running out of the house, they saw the last vestiges of the same magic fading from them as well. The old crone had trapped them, too, knowing she would have been torn to shreds lest they stayed free.

" _Fuck_. I _knew_ she was up to no good," Awryen grumbled. Then she sighed. "I have a feeling she would have forced us to sit either way. She was in control of the situation from the moment we arrived."

"At least we know _she's_ the cause of the curse...at least partially. We need to find out who this _Mother_ is. _And destroy her_ ," Varian growled, his blue eyes glowing bright under his hood. The scars across his face and eye glowed as well, making his face look eerie in the dusky lit woods.

Right before she was about to hop on to her gryphon...Awryen stopped and turned back to the house.

" _Wait..._ I think I saw something in there. Be back in a moment, Vare."

Before he could protest her going back, the draenei ran back inside, but was back out within a minute. In her hand was a worn looking journal with odd writing across the cover. The main sigil looked similar to the larger evil effigy in the village. She opened the book and noticed lots of diagrams and strange writing, but she could get the gist of what this was. Walking up to Varian, she pointed out some strategic placements that resembled what they saw in town.

"These smaller effigies...if we destroy them, we may be able to weaken the hold of the larger one. Then we may finally be able to destroy the curse and free the villagers," she said, handing the journal of spells to him.

Varian flipped through the spell book, his frown growing more and more. Whatever this type of majick was, it was dangerous. And it was not like anything he had ever seen before. Sure, it was similar to what the Twilight’s Hammer had used...but it was not the same Void touched majicks he had seen previously.

"Before we do that, we have to track down Helena. She's the _real_ threat to this village. Once she's gone, and her cursed creatures are no more, we can focus on that effigy," he growled, snapping the book shut and handing it back to his lover.

Awryen went to place it in her hip pouch when Varian reached out to her and pulled her close, his hands on her hips and his forehead placed against her own. She looked into his eyes, which were glowing fainter now that the danger had passed.

" _Please_...next time, listen to your gut, Rye. If you must, _strike first_. This land is dangerous and this majick even more so."

Placing a kiss to her brow he said quietly, "I can't afford to lose you."

Awryen smiled at him, feeling her eyes grow damp. Leaning up, she pressed a kiss to his lips before she pulled away.

"I usually do, Vare. I've done many a similar thing over the years. And I always pull through. _Trust me_ , ok?" she said quietly, taking his hand and leading him back to their still agitated mounts.

"I trust you with my life, Rye. I just... _old habits die hard_ ," he said, throwing her a sardonic smile.

"I know, and it's why I will never begrudge you it. I learned that long ago," she said, placing a hoof into the stirrup on the saddle. Swinging herself onto Naesa's back, she looked back to him, beaming slightly. "I love you."

She helped Wrynn settle onto the beleaguered Wolfhawk when Varian gave her an answering smile. Varian swung up into the saddle on Greywing and pulled the gryphon up next to hers. He reached over and placed his hand to her cheek, his fingers curling behind her neck.

" _I know_ ," he said simply and she did not need to hear his own answer. She knew it well, deep into her bones.

Composing themselves, they kicked lightly at their mounts and took off, headed up into the hills where they could feel that dark majick brewing.


	25. Day 25 - "Oops" (post Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An encounter in Stormheim ends with a new look.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My headcanon for Varian having shorter hair. Helps keep his identity secret.

Stormheim was beautiful, in a savage and wild kind of way. Awryen loved it, but that did not mean the Legion had not left its mark on the region. Which is what she and Varian were doing at that moment. Pockets of demons were still there, left over from teh intermitent invasions across the Isles, refusing to acknowledge their defeat and they were tasked with clearing out a few of them.

Jus’ma and Nakara were heading south. Eeryn was heading off towards the Halls of Valor, while she and Varian were heading north.

She pulled up next to Varian, Naesa staying just out of Greywing’s reach.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it? Wrynn loved it here. He got to strut his stuff quite a bit around the packs out here,” she said, a smile lighting her face as she spied some of the non-corrupted storm drakes flying off to their left.

The brood recognized her and gave them a wide berth, but not before the leader swooped over them and let loose a happy burst of lightening charged fire above them. It was a testament to their mounts loyalty and training that they did not flinch at such close proximity to the deadly blast.

“Kind of reminds me of Northrend...just less cold,” Varian said, gazing out and about at the sprawling landscape, watching the drakes fly off, swooping and playing behind them.

“That’s because there’s a very large vrykul population here. They traveled here thousands of years ago. They’re rough, but good people.”

“So long as they don’t try to raise the dead or something, I’m good,” he grumbled, eyes narrowed as he spotted the ruins around Aggramar’s Vault.

“Well...there was a cult of Bonespeaker’s that dabbled in black majicks...but they were dealt with.” Awryen cringed at that, not wanting to give him a bad impression of the vrykul here, but...She shook her head. “They’re a complicated people, Vare. Just like we are.”

Before he could say anything else, they both heard a slight whistle in the air. Steering Naesa’s reins sharply to the right, Awryen pulled her polearm free to swat a couple arrows from the sky. She could hear Varian do the same. Eyes narrowed, she scanned the surrounding cliffs and hills before she spotted a three man group of Horde. There were two dark rangers and an orc warrior, all three of them with their weapons trained on them.

Scowling, she scanned the area and nearly groaned.

“ _Shit_ , we’re nearing a Warden Tower. I thought we’d abandoned these...”

“ _Warden_ Tower?”

“Yes. Genn and Sylvanas over took them in a bid to gain ground, not on just the Legion’s forces, but against each other. Dumbasses, the both of them...” she growled. Anger bubbled up again as she remembered Greymane ignoring Anduin’s truce orders. Their mission had been only to observe, not attack. Greymane had put everyone on their airship in a lot of danger...

Another set of arrows headed their way and she banked to the left, following Varian down to get out of the air. Reattaching the polearm to her saddle, she unclipped the crossbow from her back and, gripping Naesa’s saddle with her knees, took aim. Breathing deep, she steadied herself and pulled the trigger.

One dark ranger down, two more Horde to go.

They landed a ways down from the duo and jumped off their mounts before they told them to fly off. They knew their companions would be there to provide support from above should they need it. Wrynn was already running ahead of them, loud savage growls following behind him.

Having grabbed her polearm before dismissing her wolfhawk, Awryen charged, gunning for the lone dark ranger, forcing her to drop her bow in favor of a long sword she had strapped to her back. Blades clashed as she dug her hooves into the ground.

“Why do you attack?! The Legion is gone, we’re not needed here any longer!!”

“My lady still needs Val’kyr. She’ll find a way to enslave them!!”

At the mention of the Forsaken leader, Awryen snarled. Though she had forgiven her, begrudgingly, for retreating at the Broken Shore, making a pact with Helya had negated that. If she and Genn had not been there to stop the former ranger general, Eyir would have been enslaved and all val’kyr would have been under her spell.

Pushing back with a roar, Awryen was relentless in her attacks. Wrynn snapped at her heels, keeping her from being able to regroup with the orc whom Varian was battling. The poor dark ranger could barely block her jabs and swings. Ducking low and swinging a hoof out, she swept the other woman’s feet out from under her. Before she could recover, the draenei raised her polearm straight up, blade down, and slammed it into the unfortunate ranger.

“ _Dark lady_ watch over you,” she hissed, mockingly. With a twist and a hideous crunch, she left the woman on the ground.

Looking up, she watched as Varian fought the orc. Both of his blades were swinging, vicious slashes and relentless pushes forward. With an enraged roar, however, the orc swung his axe and Varian had to jump back and dodge the sure to be fatal blow. But not before his hood fell away, the fabric torn from the blade. His bandana fell away, shredded. A new golden scar was slashed into his cheek, a testament to his near death.

Glaring at the brute, he bared his teeth in rage and leapt, swinging the monstrous blades at the orc, who raised his axe to block them at the last moment.

Eyes wide in recognition and surprise, one word dropped from the orc’s mouth.

“ _Lo’gosh!!_ ”

Awryen's heart dropped and she quickly ran to catch up to them.

“S _hit!! Varian!!_ ”

Struggling against the orc, the former king broke the block and swiped one of his blades at the orc’s feet. This caused the brute to stumble back and give him the opportunity to bring the other blade down, crashing it into the massive orc’s shoulder. Roars of pain echoed in the wilderness around them before Varian brough the other blade up and slashed it across the orc’s throat. With a spray of blood and a gurgling death rattle, the orc fell backward as the massive blade in his shoulder was yanked away.

Huffing in annoyance, Varian grabbed a piece of cloth that was not covered in blood. Slinging his blades to rid them of most of the blood, he began to wipe them clean, occasionally using dirt to help soak up the access. Once clean, he strapped the blades back to his back and turned to Awreyn, who had just caught up to him. Wrynn was surveying the area, nosing around to make sure there were no other Horde around to sneak up on them.

“Vare…you were _recognized_.”

“I _know_. I need a better disguise...” he grumbled, fingering the scars on his face.

Awryen let her gaze wash over him before she broached a subject she knew he may not like.

“You may need a haircut, as well, love.”

Jerking his head up to stare at her, Varian reached a hand to his long locks, tugging at them and frowning.

“ _But..._ ”

“I know. But it’s too recognizable. Even half pulled back as you’ve had it; the silhouette is easy to read.”

Blowing out a sigh, he nodded, reluctantly.

“ _Fine_ , but we’ll do something about it after we finish our initial mission.” He obviously was not happy about it. She could not blame him. He was not the only one who was attached to his long hair...

Glancing back at the dead Horde, they called for their mounts as Wrynn ran back to them and they both saddled up. Back in the air, they swung back west to fly wide of the tower.

* * *

Snip. Snip. Snip.

Awryen paused, a look of slight horror bleeding on her face.

“ **Oops.** ”

“’Oops?’ What ‘ _oops?_ ’”

“I...uh...I may have cut it a little shorter than I meant to...”

“ _Awryen..._ ” he growled.

“It’s ok!! I can fix it, but your hair will sit just a little past your shoulders. If you pull it back, it’ll be very different than what it looked like ten minutes ago. Make you look a little softer, I think.”

Still grumbling, Varian sat there and let his lover cut his hair. He had to admit, though, the weight coming off his head was...nice. But the familiar comfort of his long hair being gone was going to be hard to get used to.

After another ten minutes of fussing, Awryen began to brush at his shoulders, sweeping away the lingering strands of hair before she declared herself finished. Rifling through her bag, she found a small hand mirror and handed it to him.

He took it and turned his head back and forth quite a few times, his brows scrunched as he studied his reflection. She had not been kidding. His hair brushed his shoulders, though the back was a tad bit longer than was around his face, settling down in a soft point just a few inches above his shoulder blades. It looked nice.

He glanced up at his lover, noting her nervous fidgeting. Her hands were clasped in front of her, settled below her stomach. She shifted on her hooves as her tail flicked back and forth. He could not help but let her sweat a few more moments before he smiled at her.

“Looks good. I’ll get used to it.” Handing her back her mirror, he stood up from the stump he had been sitting on and stepped up to her before he leaned down and placed a quick kiss to her forehead.

She sighed loudly, her shoulders dropping in relief as she smiled up at him.

“ _Good._ ”

“Now we just have to replace the bandana...”

“I have an idea for that. A _proper mask_ may do the trick and I know someone who can make you one!”

"If it's Nakara, make sure she _doesn't_ make it too... _froo froo_."

His only answer was a childish tongue being stuck out at him.


	26. Day 26 - Fireplace (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Winter Veil makes people a little ~~lot~~ nosy and introspecrive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fluff for Thanksgiving today!! Soft smut at the end.

Winter Veil. This year’s celebration marked one year since they had transitioned from tip-toeing friends into full blown lovers. A little over a year since a few of the nobles tried to plan for a coup.

But none of that mattered to them. A few short hours before saw the two of them at the ball; celebrating with the nobles and their closest friends and allies. Of course, neither one of them could be seen with the other very often lest tongues start wagging more than they should. They had to keep up certain appearances, of course.

Awryen had spent much of her night with her three best friends Nakara, Eeryn, and Sun Yii. Jus’ma could not make it to the ball this year for he was needed at the garrison on Draenor. Nakara was a well of knowledge and gossip and regaled the three of them with scandalous news about certain nobles. The draenei constantly wondered if her orc friend had made some kind of impression on Shaw, for this kind of info seemed right up the SI:7’s alley. That or Valeera sought her out often.

_“So_ who _is she fucking?”_

_“Really?! A_ ranger general _candidate?”_

_“And_ him? _”_

_“Jace Darkweaver.”_

Awryen and her friends had been talking quietly about the juicy gossip when Varian had walked by, brushing a hand across her back, throwing her a warm look before he made his way to the front of the ball room. He had been joined by Genn and Anduin and announced the opening dance for the night.

Though it was risky, they followed with tradition in choosing their dance partner, but that had only been for appearances sake. The three had already chosen their partners before the night had even begun.

Varian had led her out to the dance floor first, both of them ignoring the whispers around them, starting off in a slow cant across the room before the music picked up and they fell into a faster paced waltz. Anduin and Princess Tess Greyman joined them soon after, with Genn and his wife Mia being the last to join them on the floor.

From there, the night had been fun, if a little bittersweet. Awryen could only get Varian to dance with her once more, before the night was through. He had too many nobles vying for his attention and, once again, he could not show quite so much favoritism towards her. Instead, she would dance with her friends, making funny faces as they danced silly dances to some of the more serious music. It always brought about smiles and laughter from Anduin and Tess, who had both joined in the silliness. Though she knew Genn was less approving of it, Mia had found them all charming and even encouraged her daughter to let loose.

Every now and then she spied a small smile on her lover’s face and even though they could not partake together, she was just happy knowing her presence brought him some manner of ease and joy.

“So… _Tess_ , huh?”

A half hour before the royals bade their farewells, she had Anduin to herself, him whisking her across the dance floor, spinning and dipping her with great flourishes. She had pounced on him over his choice of partner for the night.

“ _Tess_ , yes. Why?”

Her eyes were narrowed on him, not trusting his innocent look at all and wheedled him once more.

“I hear tell you two have been rather… _cozy_. I’m a little disappointed you haven’t _told_ me!!”

“That’s because there’s _nothing_ to it, Rye. We’re _friends_ …and she’s _older_ than me.”

Leaning in close to keep things between them, she hissed, “Hon, I’m a _few hundred years_ older than your _father_. That has _nothing_ to do with how you feel about her. And you are _not_ a child anymore, mister.”

A tinge of pink spread across the young prince’s face, but he had stubbornly continued his insistence that it was nothing, but she knew he was lying through his teeth. She had caught him gazing at the Gilnaen princess many times in the night, had even spied a few coy smiles thrown his way from the raven haired woman. But she dropped it. She would get him to spill later, when there were no other people around to catch wind.

Instead, she curtsied her thanks to him, narrowing her eyes as he made a beeline for the other woman and completely rolled them when he dragged her out to the dance floor.

“ _Nothing,_ my ass.”

“You notice it, _too._ ”

Varian had come up beside her, his hands folded behind his back as he stood next to her.

“He’s nowhere _near_ as subtle as he likes to _think_ he is.”

The man chuckled, his blue eyes sparkling under the white fairy lights that sprawled around the room.

“His mother was never very good at being _subtle_. Unfortunately, he took after her on that.”

“I…wouldn’t say it was just _her_ , your Majesty.”

Lips pursing into a pout, he turned his eyes to her, spying the cat grin on her face before she turned back to the young man dancing with his “friend.”

“Keep that up, and no _after-party_ for you.”

Awryen just rolled her eyes.

Smirking at her, the king turned away, but not before leaning towards her slightly.

“You best be making your way to the shortcut. I’m ending the ball in around ten minutes. I’m giving Anduin a little more time to enjoy being with Tess.”

Winking at her, he left and headed for the front of the ball room, waving to Genn and Mia, beckoning them to join him.

Giddy at the prospect of finally having him all to herself, Awryen scanned the room and found her friends talking to another elf woman, her long blonde hair accentuating the red of her dress very well. Apparently, Valeera had made an appearance.

Joining the other four women, she made her goodbyes for the night, promising to deliver them their gifts later the next day. she had thrown a hug at Nakara before she wove her way through the crowd.

As she snuck out of the crowd and headed towards the side hall that housed a hidden doorway, she heard Varian and Anduin bidding the ball goers a good Winter Veil night and to stay safe in these uncertain times.

* * *

Varian had found her waiting at his door and before he could even get it open, she had reached for him and kissed him, gripping the front lapels of his dress tunic and hauled him close. She met little resistance and reveled in his hands sliding over her hips before one of them reached for the door handle.

A few fumbles abounded before he got the door unlocked and it was only a matter of minutes before they found themselves disrobing.

Now, this was where they could be found, Awryen perched astride him, her hands splayed across his chest as she rocked against him. Her movements were languid and slow, rolling her hips forward before she pulled back and raised up slightly before repeating the movement.

Varian’s head was thrown back on a pillow that had made it on the floor as he laid back against the thick white furred rug that was placed in front of his sitting room’s fireplace. His hands were gripping her hips, guiding her movements as he met her rolling hips with his own thrusts.

“Light, it’s been _too long,_ love…so fucking _tight…_ ”

“Mmmmm… _yes_. A month is entirely too long… _aaaahhh!_ ”

Awryen tipped forward, her hands landing by his head as he bucked his hips up and settled his legs up, feet planted in the fur. Their pace picked up as she bounced against him, grinding her clit against his pelvis at each of his fast bucks.

Her breasts bounced and he leaned his head up to capture a nipple in his teeth, curling his tongue around it as he sucked it into his mouth. His now golden eyes watched her as her mouth opened in a moan, eyes trying to stay open and stay locked on his own.

Trusting her to keep up with his pace, the king reached up and pulled her face down to his, kissing her soundly. Awryen lowered her arms to rest on her elbows and bury her hands into his loose hair.

Her moans were swallowed when he bucked up hard into her, his hips stuttering before he came, his wild thrusting triggering her own. She pulled back to gasp loudly and ground down hard against him, rolling her hips as she milked him for all he was worth. When she could feel him slowing down and her own orgasm lose its potency, she sank down against him, chest to chest and breathed deep, pulling in air as they willed their hearts to stop pounding. Their sweat slicked skin shimmered in the fire light.

“Best…Winter Veil gift… _ever_.”

Awryen felt him chuckle before he wrapped his arms around her waist and gently turned them to lay side by side, still joined and not really wanting to pull apart.

“I was serious earlier, love. A month is much too long.”

“We’ve been apart that long before…”

Varian looked at her and she could see unease swimming in the sapphire depths. He read every report that came out of Draenor. One of which, months ago, had caused quite the uproar between them. Even though that had been handled, she could still see that he worried. He was not needed there as often as he had been needed in Pandaria…and it was eating at him.

“That may be so…but…I dunno. This last month, I felt it more keenly…”

“…it couldn’t be because Anduin may have _found_ someone…could it?”

Awryen watched as he pondered her question. It was fair question, she thought. He could simply be feeling a little jealous. Though Tess could not visit Stormwind all the time, she could be there more often than she herself could. And her king would never begrudge his son a chance at happiness. It did not mean that he was infallible and was prone to some jealousy. Their own relationship was a little more complicated than his son’s or Genn’s.

“It’s a part of it. The rest…this time last year you nearly _died_ and it’s been playing on my mind of late. And not seeing you for so long…doubts creep in. Fears.”

Smiling at him softly, she trailed her fingers down his cheek before cupping it.

“ _I’m not going anywhere_. We proved that last year. I’m rather hardy, Vare.”

“After that last incident on the ship…I’m _inclined_ to agree. You’re luck seems to rival _mine_ , love.”

She giggled as he rolled them until she was under him and he nuzzled against her neck before leaving a kiss that sent shivers down her spine. It caused her to squeeze around him and she felt him twitch and begin to swell once more.

“Then it’s lucky I found you!”

Snorting at her, he rolled his hips and she gasped, her eyes sliding closed as he picked up another slow pace.

“This isn’t luck, love. This is pure _want_ and _choice_ on my part. Nothing _mystical_ to it.”

Her only response was to smile at him before she pulled him into a deep kiss, her legs hooking around his hips, pulling him deeper.


	27. Day 27 - When No One is Watching (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anduin plays "I spy.".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a drabble and some scribbles. I'm not proud of this one, ngl.

Anduin prided himself on his observation skills. Being that his skills were more suited to the rear of things as opposed to being right up front in the fight, he had to develop a keen sense for his surroundings.

Because of this, his father's relationship with Awryen would sometimes...sneak up on him.

He would be walking along one of the side corridors and spy the slightest brush of her hand across his. Or her tail curling slightly to cup his calf. During war meetings, when everyone was focused on Shaw or one of the dwarven brothers, he would spy his father's hand softly cover hers or curl just one of his fingers into hers.

But the ones that would leave the prince embarrased, yet happy for the king, would be when he would spy a quick kiss; usually behind a one of the big flowering bushes in their private courtyard or the looks they would toss to one another when she would join her comrades in the throne room.

He hated to say it, but their subtle displays were not so subtle as they would like to think, but they could not seem to stop. They were always in each other's orbit, especially when no one was watching.


	28. Day 28 - By Your Side (pre Legion)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nightmare. Foreboding feelings. The here and now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a...day. I couldn't sleep, stayed up, was with my daughter, played some Shadowlands, did some sketching. No time to do this. Thus, it's late. :V But it's here and, for me, that is enough!!

Awryen woke when she felt him twitching beside her. Blinking sleepily, she turned her head towards him, having curled up on her side with her back to him earlier in the night. Except, at that point, he had been curled around her, spooning her close with his hand splayed against her stomach and his nose buried into her neck.

Now…he had worked himself into twisting up in the sheets, his body sweaty and his eyes squeezed shut, hands gripping the material of the sheets so hard they were wrinkling rather badly.

A nightmare from the looks of it.

She was not a new comer to these night terrors. Every once in a while, usually brought on by stress or by her presence being scarce, when they would share the bed that night, he would wake up in a cold sweat.

This was to be one of those nights.

Carefully, so as not to startle him _(she could remember the tight, cold grip of his fingers wrapped around her throat after the first time)_ , Awryen gently ran her fingers down his face and onto his shoulder. His skin was clammy and cool to the touch. She continued her ministrations before she crooned softly.

“Love, wake up.”

Varian did not respond at first, gripped as he was in whatever had its hold over him. Leaning ever so slightly over him, she cupped his cheek, her thumb brushing over the skin, occasionally catching the faint scar at his lips.

“Come, love, it’s _not real_ …”

He stirred slightly, his head titling to rest more comfortably into the palm of her hand.

She began to sing softly, hoping her soft tones would bring him closer to waking.

_“You’ll be safe in these arms of mine…Just call my name on the edge of the night…”_

His jerky movements began to slow and his hands lost their tight grip on the cloth underneath them. The harsh crease between his brows softened as his breathing began to slow and turn normal.

_“Even if it’s gonna break me love…gonna make my way to you…”_

He sighed softly before his eyes fluttered open, blinking at the sleep still hovering at the edges.

_“Anyway it’s gonna take me love…I run to you…”_

“Rye…”

Smiling at him softly, she flexed her fingers against his cheek as he nuzzled into her touch, cupping her hand with his before he sat up, pulling the sheets from around him. She continued to watch him as he leaned forward slightly; resting his elbows on his knees as he curled into a crossed legged sitting pose and buried his face into his hands. Resting a hand at his shoulder, she waited as he scrubbed his hands over his face before he pulled his bangs back away, breathing in deeply through his nose.

Awryen continued to wait.

Blowing out a weary sigh, Varian turned his eyes to her, those sapphire blues still faintly haunted by what his mind had shown him and her heart could only stutter and clench, reaching out to his.

“Tell me, Vare.”

He hesitated, clearly unsure if he should tell her, but she simply waited. She always would.

“It… _Memories_ , bleeding into each other. Many of them blending almost _seamlessly_ …”

Varian’s words were a bit jumbled, but she would not interrupt him. Even though he knew she would never judge him, many of his nightmares were related to his previous relationships. Guilt and fear trying to build everything up into something they were not. For some reason, a small part of his mind still felt as though he did not deserve any kind of happiness.

He sighed and started again, turning from her to gaze to focus a little more inwardly.

“I kept reliving _two_ …only the participants in one were constantly changing... The first was the day Tiffin and I presented Anduin to the kingdom…only…she kept _blurring_. One moment it was her, then the next… _you_. Anduin would change. Blonde hair like his mother, then the next, as _black_ as _yours_.”

Feeling her throat constrict, Awryen let her hand fall from his shoulder to curl her fingers over the clenched fist in his lap. He hesitated only a fraction before he unfurled his fingers and let their hands splay together, palm to palm before curling them between her own and holding onto her hand firmly. A grounding point.

“As the memory would progress, it would reach its terrible conclusion… _that fucking piece of rubble_ …”

Eyes pinched in pain, he met her eyes again.

“I would see her _fall_ , blood spilling down her face…only when she hit the ground… _it was you_.”

Frustrated tears gathered at the corners of his eyes and he stubbornly reached with his free hand to scrub them away.

“The second…was a little less complicated, yet no less _painful_. You and Anduin after the bell incident…only _this_ time, Velen didn’t make it in time. Both of you…so _still_ and _silent_ at my feet…”

Awryen could not be entirely sure, but this one seemed to disturb him the most. She supposed it would. He had years to come to grips with and reconcile his feelings over the death of his wife, but her near brush with death in Pandaria…his son’s near death… All of that was still fresh and had been an all too real possibility.

Squeezing his hand gently, she willed him to turn his gaze back to her and when he did, tugged his hand to her, pulling him in close so that she could wrap her other arm around his waist. Tucking her chin into his shoulder, she embraced him. His free arm was quick to circle her waist as well and he burried his nose into her neck.

“…I know I don’t need to say it, love…but…”

“I know. My mind was just being _extra_ cruel, Awryen. The past few weeks have been worrying me.”

He pulled back slightly to gaze into her eyes.

“You’ve been busy pushing further into Tanaan, deep into Legion territory there and I worry. Your reports aren’t exactly the most cheerful reading material.”

Chuckling soflty, she untangled her hand from his in between them and wrapped her arm about his waist, linking her fingers together at his back.

“ _Trust me_ Vare, things will be fine. We’re almost ready to invade the citadel and soon…everything will be _over_. Garrosh is dead and all we have to do is stop Gul'dan and his masters.”

Humming softly against her skin, he squeezed her close before he spoke again.

“It isn’t just that, love. My instincts… _they never lie_. Something big is coming and I fear it may bring a lot of heartache in the future.”

For the first time, Awryen felt the slightest tinge of fear and worry coil in the pit of her stomach. If there was one thing she had learned in these last few years, it was to trust his gut. The man had not survived everything he had done in his life without it.

However, there was nothing she could do. Nothing _he_ could do. Whatever could happen, could.

Sighing softly as he pulled away and untucking her chin, she leaned up and pressed a kiss into his lips. Their noses brushed softly and before it could turn deeper, she pulled back.

“Let’s not worry for now. I trust your instincts, Vare. But right now…”

“Move on and don't worry about it.”

“Right.”

Smiling at him to ease him slightly, she brought her hand back up to his face and caressed his cheek.

“I’m here. You’re here. And Anduin is here. That’s all that matters, love. Let go of those fears for now, ok?”

Giving her a rueful smile, Varian dipped his head this time to capture her lips, only this time she let him push it deeper. His arms about her waist loosened as he slid his hands to rest at her hips. Pushing slightly, she got the idea and let him lay her back into the sheets on her side of his bed…their bed. His hands traveled over her skin, grazing the underside of her breasts before he buried his fingers into her hair, settling over her and in between her legs.

Feeling much better and less worried over the state of his mind, she let him take over. He needed this, something that was tangible and something she knew he could control, which would let his mind begin to rest easy. The past was forever in the past and that would never change. But this, his hands leaving fire in their wake as he worked his magic over her body, down her sides, her stomach, her legs, was here.

Now.


	29. Day 29 - Free (post Game)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At last...they are free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is SO completely indulgent and sappy and a complete spit in the face of that whole "losing yourself" thing that is so prevelant in Shadwolands. It's also written with minimal info on things because I'm still early on in Bastion, but I get the gist of what the Aspirants must do. And even though I LOVE the place...I bristle at that. So, I said "fuck that" and this became a thing.
> 
> Hope you like the immense amount of anime-level hope and friendship!!

When Awryen woke, she found herself in a very familiar, strange city. Sharp lines that would turn diagonally and frame a few of the circular designs in the walls, windows, and collums. But what struck her was the very familar faces of the Attendents and the Brokers.

A hand curled into hers and made her jump. Turning her head, she was greeted with warm, sapphire eyes as Varian, looking very much how he did before he died on that cursed shore, smiled at her.

"You're _finally here_. Though, I had thought you would beat me, since...you died before me."

His eyes grew sad for but a moment before he pulled her gently to him and tucked his chin into her shoulder. Her own arms wrapped around him, clinging to his shirt.

"We're _free,_ love...no more _pain_. No more _heartache_...no more _worries_. We did our best for Azeroth."

When he pulled back, he cupped her cheek and placed a soft kiss upon her lips.

"Our families, and their decendents, will take care of Azeroth."

Smiling at her once more, he turned when she spied a few familiar faces waiting on them.

Kleia and Pelegos, with smiles upon their faces, beckoned for them to follow as they lead way to the Arbiter.

"Though we aren't supposed to, Awryen, we kept tabs on both of you over those long centuries. We have a good feeling about where you'll end up."

* * *

As had been predicted, they were sent to Bastion. But, this time...things were a bit different. Most aspirants had to undergo so many trials and tribulations, many of them over centuries, to devest themselves of their wordly burdens and memories. But these two...well, they had done their level best to become less judgemental and true to themselves over time. Plus, they had done their trials years ago when they came to save the realm of death.

In helping both the Horde and the Alliance into bringing much needed balance and peace unto Azeroth, they had left to traverse the world and help where they were needed.

Anduin and his queen, Tess Greymane nee Wrynn, had lead the kingdom into much better prosperity than Varian had. And the former king was so very proud of the man his son became. Their children, two girls, became the heirs to their kingdoms, breaking a cycle of only men being the heads of state and both flourished under them. The Dwarven clans finally reconciled and united entirely, while the Gnomes were able to reclaim their city and join with Mechagon, creating a vast close knit kingdom across the planet.

Hyjal became the new home of the surviving Kaldorei race, though there were dedicated groups of druids who stayed behind to help Teldrasill regrow, with help from their bretheren in the Cenarion Circle. By the time the Void attacked, both World Trees were thriving.

Awryen's people, the Draenei, had stayed to make their home there on Azeroth. The Exodar was repaired in as much as it could be and leveled out with the help of the Naaru and their Dwarven friends. With Tempest Keep, its satelites, and the Vindicaar, their city became a new beacon in the north of Kalimdor. There were a few who ventured out to try and help reclaim some of their history on Argus, even family and friends, from what was left of the Legion. Many succeeded and the Eredar race flourished once more.

On the Horde side, with help from what they had learned in the Shadowlands, druids, priests and paladins were finally able to heal the Ghostlands and the Dead Scar. The plaguelands were no longer such and all taint of that foul death was gone. Many of the Forsaken, having gone through so much in both their lives and unlives, and in the Shadowlands, were finally ready to rest and an entire race was gone in a matter of decades. The Tauren clans united, the Orcs were finally working towards less warlike traditions with the help of their neighbors and became the shamanic race they had been and were always meant to be.

The Troll clans, especially the Darkspear, did not unite entirely, but they had truces and treaties with many of the other Horde races, the Alliance, and each other. Soon, they became a vast sprawling race once more.

The Goblins...well, they were always themelves, though they were able to recover some of their homelands in Kezan.

The allied races either continued their allegiences with their respective factions or broke away, deciding who they wished to work with over time. The Lightforged joined their bretheren in their reclamation efforts, while the Nightborne mended their rift with the Kaldorei. Soon, the various elven races were on better terms and sharing their cultures across Azeroth.

But, none of that mattered now. Not really.

These feats and their achievements when they had been here previously had elevated Varian and Awryen far more quickly than most. And they had proven that their experiences had helped to make them less judgmental and virtuous over time. Something others had not been able to achieve. So when they ascended, they knew themselves; were long ago soulbound, true to themselves and to eachother.

They became known as the Free Ones.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the closest we'll get to a happy ending with these two.
> 
> I also broke a bit of lore by having those two Kyrian be there to wait for them and bring them to Bastion after the Arbiter judges them worthy.
> 
> Also, Aspirants CAN choose how to "present their true selves" so Varian and Awryen keep their apperences. No need to lose who they are, Blizzard. XP


End file.
